07 October 2022

Need help finding strong action verbs for our resume?

A few tips:

Use the “find” function for commonly used words (e.g., developed, estimated) to make sure that you are not over-using any words
Try not to use the same verb more than 3 times (not a hard rule, but you want to demonstrate your ability to communicate, and variety is key)
Check this list and/or use thesaurus.com if you’re stuck, try to vary your language

Analytics & Problem-Solving verbs:

Allocated	Developed	Modeled
Analyzed	Estimated	Optimized
Assessed	Evaluated	Projected
Budgeted	Examined	Reduced
Built	Explored	Resolved
Calculated	Forecasted	Sized
Decreased	Identified	Solved
Determined	Increased	Validated

Communication verbs:

Clarified	Documented	Published
Communicated	Drafted	Reported
Crafted	Edited	Reviewed
Created	Explained	Summarized
Demonstrated	Instructed	Synthesized
Designed	Interviewed	Translated
Detailed	Presented	Wrote

Leadership:

Achieved	Governed	Led
Advised	Guided	Managed
Determined	Instituted	Mentored
Delivered	Initiated	Motivated
Drove	Innovated	Oversaw
Enforced	Implemented	Recommended
Enhanced	Improved	Shaped
Finalized	Launched	Strategized

Teamwork verbs:

Advanced	Contributed	Partnered
Aligned	Cultivated	Supported
Collaborated	Enabled	Taught
Connected	Mitigated	Trained

Impact:

Remember, you’ll want to show a range of the skills above. Impact is a little different. You want to demonstrate an impact in every bullet point on your resume. You can lead with the impact, or structure your bullet as “(action verb)...(impact).” Some suggestions for how to include impact in your bullets are below.

...achieving a 15% increase...	...improving	...optimizing
...driving	...informing	...resulting in
...enabling	...modernizing	...scaling

Smiling candidate and coach collaborating on consulting interview preparation at Prepmatter.