Writing

CV action verbs that carry weight

August 6, 2026 · 4 min read

A bullet that opens with responsible for, helped with or worked on tells the reader nothing about what you actually did. Open with a verb that names the action.

Building & shipping

Built, designed, developed, launched, shipped, architected, implemented, automated, migrated, rebuilt, integrated, deployed.

Leading & owning

Led, owned, drove, coordinated, directed, established, founded, mentored, chaired, onboarded.

Improving & fixing

Reduced, increased, cut, accelerated, streamlined, optimised, consolidated, resolved, eliminated, recovered, hardened.

Analysing & deciding

Analysed, modelled, forecast, evaluated, diagnosed, quantified, benchmarked, prioritised, scoped.

Influencing & communicating

Negotiated, persuaded, advised, presented, aligned, secured, briefed, championed.

Stop opening with

Responsible for, helped, assisted, worked on, involved in, participated in, tasked with, supported (unless you genuinely mean second-line support), utilised (just say “used”).

Every verb still needs an action and, wherever you have one, a number. The verb gets you read; the number gets you believed.

Roleweave does this for you — tailors your CV to a posting, scores it, and writes the cover letter.

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