The verb you choose tells a recruiter how much of the work was yours. 'Was involved in the migration' and 'led the migration' describe the same project and two different candidates.
Built and shipped
Built, developed, designed, launched, shipped, implemented, deployed, created, architected, prototyped. Use for things that didn't exist before you.
Improved something existing
Cut, reduced, raised, increased, accelerated, streamlined, automated, optimised, refactored, consolidated, simplified. These pair naturally with a before-and-after number.
Led and owned
Led, owned, managed, coordinated, mentored, trained, hired, chaired, drove. Only use these if it's true — a hiring manager will ask who else was involved, and the answer has to match.
Analysed and decided
Analysed, evaluated, forecast, modelled, diagnosed, investigated, benchmarked, recommended. Strongest when followed by what the analysis changed.
Persuaded and dealt with people
Negotiated, presented, advised, resolved, onboarded, partnered, escalated, aligned. Useful for sales, HR, support and consulting work where the output is an agreement rather than an artefact.
The six to delete
- Responsible for — describes a job description, not an accomplishment
- Worked on — says nothing about your contribution
- Helped with — actively reduces your credit
- Assisted in — same problem, more formal
- Involved in — the weakest construction in resume writing
- Handled — vague; say what you actually did with it
Two rules people get wrong
Past tense for everything except your current role's ongoing duties, and don't repeat the same verb twice in one role — the repetition is more noticeable in a short bulleted list than you'd expect.
Put this into practice
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Read the full writing guide