One simple trick to help your CV stand out

When you sit down to write or update your CV, do you start by jotting down a few points about your duties and responsibilities in your current role – points that could easily have come from your previous job descriptions?

While this is a good way to get ideas down on paper, it shouldn’t form the basis of your final application. For recruiters and hiring managers, it’s your achievements that really count – we want proof that you did your previous jobs well.

This blog will explore how to elevate your CV and why this trick is even more important in the age of the Applicant Tracking System (ATS), which will be the first test your CV faces.

Use action verbs

One of the simplest and most helpful ways to ensure you emphasise your accomplishments in the career history section of your CV: action verbs. 

These, combined with the inclusion of quantifiable data, force you to include your results and achievements. It really is a simple trick that ensures you put your successes front and centre, rather than simply list your past responsibilities one by one. 

For example, instead of writing that you managed a team, try verbs such as ‘directed’, ‘guided’, or ‘motivated’. For example, “Motivated a team of five underperformers, resulting in customer service scores increasing 55% within a year.” 

Examples of action verbs 

Here are some action verbs that you can use, related to common human skills (or soft skills), and responsibilities from previous roles. These will turn your projects into achievements: 

• Communication: Wrote, published, edited, swayed, liaised with, collaborated with
• Creativity: Built, crafted, devised, implemented, pioneered, initiated, established
• Efficiency: Enhanced, advanced, maximised, leveraged, optimised, refined, remodelled, upgraded, transformed, reduced, decreased, consolidated, saved, yielded, increased
• Leadership: Headed, coordinated, executed, operated, guided, fostered, motivated, recruited, enabled, united
• Organisation: Facilitated, programmed, arranged, coordinated, allocated
• Performance: Awarded, exceeded, outperformed, earned, granted, reached, surpassed, accomplished 

Which action verbs are right for you? 

Struggling for ideas? To help you decide which action verbs to use, look at the job description and see which ones stand out. Mirroring these as closely as possible will make you appear a better fit for the role.  

You can also ask AI tools, such as ChatGPT or Copilot, to extract these from the job description, or to generate suggestions. Use a prompt such as: “Suggest action verbs and metrics to include on the CV of a marketing executive, related to a campaign across multiple channels.” 

Why do action verbs matter to an Applicant Tracking System? 

Before your CV reaches the hiring manager or recruiter, it’s highly likely that it will be analysed by an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) CV checker. This tool will rapidly scan and rank thousands of applications. It’s looking for a clear structure that’s simple to understand, as well as keywords that match the job description. 

Here’s how including action verbs will help your CV rank higher: 

1. Keywords 

The job description should feature action verbs to describe the responsibilities of the role, as well as what the right candidate looks like. Using the same language in your application will increase the chances of the ATS marking your CV as relevant. 

2. Clarity 

The ATS may struggle to comprehend passive constructions. Action verbs are a simple solution, making your achievements clearer. For example, instead of “project management,” saying “managed projects” is more direct and impactful—something both ATS and recruiters prefer. 

3. Clear structure 

Starting each bullet point in your Employment History section with an action verb will improve the structure, making it easier to read for both ATS checkers and humans. 

Next steps 

Whether your application is being read by an ATS tool or a human, the language you use matters as much as what you’re saying. After reading this blog, you should now understand: 

• What action verbs are
• Why action verbs are important
• How to choose which action verbs to use in your CV 

Now it’s time to put it into practice. Learn how to begin your CV with a personal statement here, or see our full step-by-step series to writing the perfect CV.

Download our full jobseeker toolkit here.