Resume Writing Guide
How to Write Resume Accomplishments That Get Interviews
The difference between a resume that gets callbacks and one that does not usually comes down to one thing: accomplishments versus duties. This guide shows you how to turn "responsible for" into "achieved."
Duties vs Accomplishments
Duties describe what your job required. Accomplishments describe what you achieved while doing it. Hiring managers already know what a project manager or software engineer does. They want to know what you did differently.
Duty (weak)
"Managed a team of engineers"
Accomplishment (strong)
"Led a team of 8 engineers to deliver the payment platform redesign 2 weeks ahead of schedule, reducing checkout abandonment by 23%"
The STAR Method
STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result. It is the most reliable framework for writing accomplishment statements. You do not need to spell out all four elements — but thinking through them ensures your bullet points have substance.
What was the context or challenge?
What were you specifically responsible for?
What did you do?
What was the measurable outcome?
Quantify Everything
Numbers are the most powerful element of an accomplishment statement. They provide concrete evidence of impact. When you cannot provide exact numbers, estimate conservatively and use qualifiers like "approximately" or "over."
Weak: Improved customer satisfaction
Strong: Improved customer satisfaction scores from 72% to 91% over 6 months
Weak: Reduced costs
Strong: Reduced infrastructure costs by $45K annually by migrating to containerized deployments
Weak: Grew the user base
Strong: Grew monthly active users from 12K to 48K through targeted onboarding optimization
Strong Action Verbs
Start every bullet point with an action verb. Avoid passive constructions like "was responsible for" or "helped with." Here are verbs that demonstrate impact:
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