How to Write Achievements on a CV: A Simple Formula and Examples by Field
Turn duties into achievements recruiters believe. A three-part formula (action, result, number), how to find numbers when you think you have none, and before-and-after examples from sales, admin, IT, healthcare and teaching.
Most CVs describe the job, not the person who did it. Two candidates with the same title will have the same duties; what separates them is what changed because they were there. That is an achievement, and it is the main thing a recruiter — and an ATS scoring your relevance — is looking for.
The formula: action + result + proof
- Action: a strong verb that says what you did (led, reduced, built).
- Result: what changed — faster, cheaper, more, better, safer.
- Proof: a number, a scale or a comparison that makes it believable.
Duty: Handled customer complaints. Achievement: Resolved 30+ complaints a week and raised the satisfaction score from 3.9 to 4.6 in one year.
Where to find numbers when you think you have none
- Volume: how many customers, tickets, patients, students, invoices or projects per day, week or year?
- Money: budget managed, revenue generated, costs saved.
- Time: how much faster did a process become? What deadline did you meet?
- Scale: team size, number of sites, users, countries.
- Rank or comparison: top 3 of 20 sales reps, best audit score in the region.
- Honest estimates are fine — write about, around or 20+ — but never invent figures you cannot explain in an interview.
Before and after, by field
- Sales — Before: Responsible for key accounts. After: Grew 12 key accounts by 28% in revenue in 2025.
- Administration — Before: Managed office supplies. After: Cut office supply costs by 18% by consolidating three suppliers into one.
- IT — Before: Worked on the website. After: Reduced page load time from 4.2 to 1.3 seconds, lifting mobile conversions by 15%.
- Nursing — Before: Cared for patients. After: Cared for up to 8 patients per shift on a 30-bed surgical ward with zero medication errors in 2 years.
- Teaching — Before: Taught maths. After: Raised the pass rate of two Year 10 classes from 68% to 85%.
- Customer service — Before: Answered calls. After: Handled 60+ calls a day with a 92% first-contact resolution rate.
Common mistakes
- Achievements without context: Increased sales by 50% means little if the base was two sales.
- Team results claimed as personal: write Contributed to or state your share.
- Too many numbers in one bullet — one strong figure is enough.
- Achievements buried at the bottom: put the strongest bullet first in each role.
Upload your CV to CV Analyz: the report shows a score out of 100 and points out which lines describe duties instead of achievements.
Check your resume for freeFrequently asked questions
What is an achievement on a CV?
A concrete result that changed because of your work — faster, cheaper, more or better — ideally proven with a number, rather than a description of your duties.
What if I do not have numbers?
Use volume, time, scale or comparison: how many, how often, how fast, for how many people. Honest estimates such as about or 20+ are acceptable.
How many achievements per job?
Three to five bullets for recent roles, with the strongest first; one or two for older roles.