About key achievements

Quite often applicants write CVs/resumes as a list of key tasks/duties performed, which does give an employer some insights.  However, this approach has its limitations. It doesn’t give the reader any insights into how well you performed those tasks. 

A more effective way of presenting your experience is to use key achievements, instead of tasks.  Achievements help to show a prospective employer what you brought to the role, that perhaps someone else did not. It’s very similar to the work we did on your profile statement. Written well you can still cover your main responsibilities, but in such a way that your achievements really stand out.  It is much more interesting for the reader, therefore increasing your chances of securing that interview.

Recruiters repeatedly stress four critical components that differentiate poor and strong applicants; 

  • clarity
  • conciseness
  • structure
  • logical flow

Using an example, a salesperson may say they were “responsible for sales across a (specific) region”.  Whereas what they actually did was “increased turnover in the wholesale sector by 20%, in the face of an inherited loss”.  Can you see how that could have so much more impact?