Best CV Action Verbs (UK): 100+ Power Words by Category with Before and After Examples
The language you use in your CV determines whether your experience sounds passive or impactful. "Responsible for managing a team" is weak. "Led a cross-functional team of 14 to deliver a £2M programme three weeks ahead of schedule" is not. The difference is a single word: the verb.
Why weak verbs undermine strong experience
Weak CV phrases describe a role rather than an action:
- "Responsible for..."
- "Involved in..."
- "Helped with..."
- "Assisted in..."
- "Worked on..."
These phrases bury the candidate's contribution. They do not tell the recruiter what you actually did, how you did it, or what resulted.
Leadership and management
Strong verbs: Led, Managed, Directed, Oversaw, Supervised, Mentored, Coached, Developed, Mobilised, Coordinated, Delegated, Championed, Empowered, Recruited, Restructured, Unified
Before: "Responsible for managing a team of sales assistants."
After: "Supervised a team of 11 sales assistants, reducing absenteeism by 23% through restructured scheduling and weekly one-to-ones."
Achievement and impact
Strong verbs: Achieved, Delivered, Exceeded, Surpassed, Grew, Increased, Reduced, Saved, Generated, Won, Secured, Accelerated, Transformed, Maximised, Optimised, Doubled, Recovered
Before: "Helped increase sales revenue."
After: "Grew regional B2B revenue by 31% in 18 months by expanding the account portfolio from 42 to 67 clients."
Analysis and data
Strong verbs: Analysed, Evaluated, Assessed, Identified, Investigated, Modelled, Forecasted, Measured, Tracked, Audited, Benchmarked, Interpreted, Reviewed, Examined, Synthesised, Monitored
Before: "Worked on financial reporting."
After: "Analysed monthly P&L across seven cost centres, identifying a £140k variance that had gone undetected for two reporting cycles."
Communication and stakeholder management
Strong verbs: Presented, Communicated, Negotiated, Influenced, Advised, Consulted, Liaised, Collaborated, Facilitated, Briefed, Authored, Drafted, Wrote, Pitched, Persuaded, Represented
Before: "Involved in stakeholder communications."
After: "Briefed C-suite stakeholders on programme progress at monthly steering groups, adapting technical updates for non-specialist audiences."
Project and process management
Strong verbs: Planned, Coordinated, Delivered, Implemented, Launched, Executed, Streamlined, Automated, Restructured, Standardised, Introduced, Redesigned, Migrated, Consolidated, Scoped
Before: "Helped with the implementation of a new system."
After: "Coordinated the migration to Salesforce across 4 departments, managing 12 stakeholders and delivering 2 weeks ahead of a £30k penalty deadline."
Technical and engineering
Strong verbs: Engineered, Developed, Architected, Built, Programmed, Deployed, Configured, Integrated, Debugged, Optimised, Automated, Designed, Refactored, Maintained, Tested, Secured
Before: "Worked on the backend API."
After: "Engineered a RESTful API in Node.js handling 40,000 daily requests, reducing average response time from 850ms to 210ms through query optimisation and Redis caching."
Training and development
Strong verbs: Trained, Taught, Delivered, Coached, Mentored, Facilitated, Designed, Developed, Evaluated, Upskilled, Onboarded, Inducted, Certified, Assessed
Before: "Helped train new staff."
After: "Designed and delivered a 3-week induction programme for 22 new hires, reducing time-to-competency from 8 weeks to 5."
Sales and commercial
Strong verbs: Sold, Pitched, Closed, Prospected, Generated, Upsold, Retained, Grew, Negotiated, Converted, Developed, Expanded, Targeted, Exceeded
Before: "Responsible for generating new business."
After: "Prospected and closed 18 new enterprise accounts in Q3, generating £210k in ARR and exceeding the quarterly target by 34%."
Creative and content
Strong verbs: Created, Designed, Produced, Wrote, Edited, Directed, Conceived, Developed, Launched, Curated, Crafted, Illustrated, Filmed, Scripted, Published
Before: "Worked on content for social media."
After: "Created and managed an organic social media calendar across LinkedIn and Instagram, growing combined follower count from 4.2k to 11.8k in seven months."
Vary your verbs: avoid repetition
Scan your CV for repeated openers and replace them.
Common repeats to watch for:
- "Managed" used in every bullet point
- "Responsible for" as a default when stuck
- "Supported" — almost always a sign of underselling your contribution
Aim to use no verb more than twice across your entire experience section.
Tense: past or present?
- Current role: use present tense for ongoing responsibilities
- Previous roles: use past tense throughout
- Consistency is critical — mixed tenses in the same bullet are a red flag
Frequently asked questions
Should I use UK or American English?
UK English throughout. "Organised" not "organized," "analysed" not "analyzed." Consistency signals attention to detail.
Can I start multiple bullet points with the same verb?
Two uses in a long experience section is acceptable. Three or more reads as repetitive and should be edited.
Are power verbs more important for some roles?
They matter most in competitive sectors — finance, consulting, law, tech, and marketing — where many strong candidates apply and recruiters make quick judgements.