125 Top Achievements to Put on Your Resume

Standing out among others with similar education and years of experience can be challenging in today’s job market. The best way to grab prospective employers’ attention is to highlight a separate section of achievements showing a history of dedication and tenacity that mimics the job description. In addition, many hiring managers find past performance can predict future results.

This guide will help you determine how to list achievements and awards and effectively use these 125 different choices in your resume format.

Here is a quick list so you can click on your industry:

Administrative Sector
Foodservice Industry
Customer Service
Finance
Education
Manufacturing
Arts and Entertainment District
Recreation
Utilities and Service Sector
Professional Services

How to Write Your Achievements

You do not want to overcomplicate listing your key achievements on your resume summary. Keep it concise but straightforward, so it is easy for the hiring manager to see exactly how terrific you are at your job.

Explore these bullet points for some tips on different ways to include your best achievements successfully:

• Choose an explicit skill, avoid being vague
• Include a timeline or duration of your achievement progress
• Use active language and strong action verbs that specify your involvement
• Include specific examples that outline the scope and size of your achievement task
• Incorporate measurement of your achievement results

Finding professional achievements to include on your entry-level resume can be challenging, especially if you do not have a long work history. However, you should not leave this critical achievement section out.

To make it easier, we have a list of 125 achievements to refer to and use as a guideline for your job application.

Examples of Top Achievements for Your Resume

Administrative Sector

Business skills from previous roles can show a hiring manager what you can do in a professional setting.

1. Corporate Secretary: I introduced a new filing system that streamlined the client communication process, saving days and weeks of the contract deliberations. This adjustment increased efficiency and helped free time for more potential clients.

2. Office Manager: I brought office costs down by almost 25% overall, using different local suppliers. This decision saved the company money and built stronger business relationships with local companies in our city.

3. Legal Secretary: For my entire time at Smith & Smith, I maintained scheduling calendars using proprietary software that I helped design with the IT department. This coordination helped save time and resources for both departments.

4. Administrative Assistant: I helped minimize our contractor’s travel costs by 30% within six months of my hire date from switching travel agent services.

5. Board Member: I accepted the position of Board Member after working with several employees at ABC Company for three years.

6. Business Administrator: I made the management team aware of the unproductive phone system in place at the last board meeting. I recommended a better choice to handle inbound and outbound calls more efficiently, which is now in place, and there are fewer dropped or lost calls from clients.

7. Office Assistant: I created an employee welcome package to help new hires settle in with all the needed information. This package helped save time in the HR department with the numerous previous emails and phone calls requesting information regarding pay periods, benefits, and parking.

8. Administrative Secretary: I successfully implemented a workflow project to increase the productivity of the management team after only six months of employment.

9. Receptionist: I incorporated a new automatic ordering system that allowed all managers to receive supplies on time before running too low. This program kept everyone from losing work hours due to a lack of tools and supplies.

10. Office Administrator: I completely reorganized incoming and outgoing mail to help save time during the distribution process. Consequently, fewer letters and packages were misfiled or went missing after implementation.

11. Personal Assistant: I used multiple scheduling methods to keep the management team on track with deadlines for the board meetings, eliminating any last-minute stress when preparing for quarterly meetings.

12. Corporate Administrator: I arranged and executed a conflict resolution class for our branch offices throughout the district during the off-season. This task helped to increase morale and employee camaraderie.

13. Receptionist Assistant: I single-handedly incorporated a new digital filing system over two months that helped make filing and retrieving documents more efficient.

14. Chief Operating Officer: I was offered a promotion to the position of COO after working with XYZ Company for five years.

15. Health and Safety Administrator: I ensured all necessary safety documentation was always available to employees by creating an online portal to download files 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This process helped to speed up the reporting time for job site incidents by three days.

16. Fleet Administrator: I worked with the IT department for an entire year to create and implement a new database for handling all the fleet equipment information more efficiently.

Foodservice Industry

Past jobs in the foodservice industry have many relatable and transferrable skills through many sectors.

17. Drive-Thru Agent: I operated the drive-thru counter during busiest times with less than 2% order mistakes. In turn, the drive-thru processed clients more quickly and increased our repeat business that year.

18. Supervisor: I accepted the shift supervisor position they offered me after working only six months at XY Restaurant. This promotion was from my ability to streamline the ordering process by adding an extra server during peak hours.

19. Delivery Service: I delivered all my assigned orders under the allotted 45-minute guideline to ensure exceptional service without any losses of clients or products.

20. Front Counter Server: I was nominated as Server of the Week by a Customer Experience Survey three weeks in a row.

21. Catering Agent: I secured repeat customers each year that I held employment at ABC Company and managed to increase our client list by 10% in the last two years.

22. Grill and Fry Cook: After completing my Food Safety Handling course, I initiated a task force at my company to ensure all employees continued to follow proper safe handling requirements.

23. Food Service Worker: I worked as part of a team of 12 individuals who consistently outperformed the other shifts by minimizing the time each customer spent waiting for their orders.

24. District Manager: I accepted a promotion from Area Manager to District Manager after three years of increasing revenue using simple add-on suggestions during the client’s ordering process.

25. Waitress: I was offered the position during the morning shift because of my quick and exceptional service during the dinner rush while at XYZ Company.

26. Sous Chef: I was given a promotion to the position of Sous Chef after working under the direction of Chef Harold for a year while at ABC Company.

Customer Service

Relating to clients is virtually part of all job duties, no matter what industry. Therefore, these soft skills are terrific for your job application.

27. Customer Service Representative: I received Employee of the Month for four consecutive months while working at Costco. This achievement came from my excellent customer service skills and nominations from our clients.

28. Client Rep: ABC Company gave me a mentor position for new hires after completing the company training program quicker than the allotted time.

29. Quality Assurance Associate: I received quarterly bonuses after keeping my client resolution statistics up to over 80% for an entire year.

30. Airline Attendant: They promoted me to shift supervisor on our crew after working with XYZ Company for only a year.

31. Telephone Support Representative: I received the monthly award of two days of paid vacation leave after providing exceptional customer service to clients while working at ABC Company.

32. Feed Store Attendant: They recognized me as the employee with the least amount of product mistakes three months in a row while working at ABC Company.

33. Customer Representative: After extensive research for the last quarter, I found several inconsistencies with client files that would have prevented them from receiving paid invoices promptly. I rectified it before the invoices came due, eliminating a possible customer service issue.

34. Front Desk Clerk: I won a free weekend vacation from my past employer for my exceptional customer service during the year based on client feedback surveys.

35. Public Transportation Worker: I helped implement a monthly program for seniors to avoid missing necessary appointments and scheduled meetings. Because of this initiative, we expanded the fleet to include specialized transport busses for the senior homes in the area.

36. Grocery Clerk: I received a promotion from grocery clerk to shift supervisor after successfully having a 0% deviation in my till balance every day of work for a year.

37. Sales Team Rep: I was part of a team that brought in the highest average of clients within six months, helping to increase local exposure to the company brand and sales revenue.

38. Store Manager: I reorganized stock and inventory on the sales floor, which helped increase sales after implementation due to better customer traffic flow through the store.

39. Pet Groomer: I received the monthly award for Groomer of the Month after working at my previous job for only two months.

40. Gas Station Attendant: My previous employer recognized me for observing mistakes in the refueling process with one of our tanks. This detail would have cost the company thousands in damage to vehicles if it went unknown.

41. Liquor Store Attendant: I received a monthly bonus for having the least amount of product losses of our store while on my shift during that time.

42. House Cleaner: I built a private house cleaning business as a sole proprietor, and within six months, I had enough clients to hire staff to help with the work from referrals I was getting each week.

43. Grocery Store Manager: I accepted a promotion to the store manager position after working for three years at ABC Company and overseeing multiple departments without any customer incidents.

Finance

Your work experience section should show the relevant skills for the job title you want. In addition, job seekers can tailor a good resume by including achievement elements.

44. Bank Teller: I successfully processed 30+ client transactions each day with less than 0.1% inaccuracies during my ten years of employment.

45. Internal Auditor: I accepted a promotion to the position of Internal Auditor after working with the management team on a client case where I found several inconsistencies to help balance out their yearly financials.

46. Hedge Fund Associate: I was part of a team of six that successfully brought in three additional clients each quarter for an entire year, creating significant revenue increases of over 25%.

47. Bookkeeper: With timely and professional service, my referral list from current clients in the past year has grown exponentially, that I have had to turn some clients away because I cannot take them all on as regulars.

48. Life Insurance Sales Associate: I was named Sales Rep of the Year three years in a row because of my quarterly sales consistently sitting in the top three rankings during that time.

49. Corporate Auditor: I coordinated with my supervisor on a short-term three-month project to streamline the auditing process for small businesses. Since they do not require extensive recordkeeping, we saved hours on our billable time for these clients.

50. Accountant: I managed to balance records for a complicated client that two other associates could not complete within the allotted fiscal year.

51. Accounts Payable Clerk: I secured corporate discounts from our supplies by ensuring invoices were paid at least seven days before the due date.

52. Finance Assistant: I helped introduce a budgeting class for low-income families at our local library last year, which provided tools and tips to keep their financial situation better than in the past.

53. Financial Advisor: I helped three clients decrease their expenses and start a retirement fund account for their future in my first month of employment.

54. Life and Disability Sales Agent: I acquired my certificate for legally selling life and disability insurance in my state while maintaining a full-time receptionist job at the insurance agency.

55. Personal and Business Loans Specialist: I brought in an additional 25 new loan clients to the bank during my first year at ABC Company.

56. Financial Analyst: I successfully helped five organizations in [20__] reduce their overhead costs by almost 20% with cost-cutting measures that did not include employee layoffs.

Education

Academic achievements can help showcase some of your thinking and problem-solving attributes.

57. Valedictorian: I was the valedictorian during my senior year of college at Berkley. Because of this achievement as a recent graduate, I received a paid internship at a local financial office to help further my career path.

58. Student Body President: I was voted Student Body President in [20__] while attending UCLA.

59. Mentor: I mentored students with a low GPA or individuals seeking additional help during class. My assistance gave the teacher more time to help others who needed more guidance.

60. Honor Roll Student: I received honors for having a GPA of 3.75 or higher each year I attended school.

61. High School Teacher: I orchestrated and maintained the high school track club outside of office hours. This initiative helped promote physical fitness and healthy choices to teenagers on a meager budget.

62. Personal Life Coach: I coached several individuals who used the tools I gave them to quickly become known for their dynamic abilities to create artistic pieces for hotels.

63. Dean’s List Recipient: I was on the Dean’s List for two years in a row while attending Princeton University.

64. Public Speaking Award: I received the Public Speaking Award through my college for my presentation on greenhouse gasses in our community.

65. Continuing Education: I received my diploma in Office Administration through my local e-learning facility while simultaneously working full-time at my previous job.

66. Student Editor: XYZ School offered me the Student Editor position at our school newspaper after only one year of working with the faculty.

67. Childcare / Child Development: Listing career accomplishments of previous jobs can set you up for a successful hiring process with the company of your choosing.

68. Teacher: I implemented a morning breakfast program for the kids at X Elementary by doing fundraising. Once in place, student productivity went up, discipline actions decreased, and classroom behaviors were more positive overall.

69. Pre-School Healthcare Aide: I ran a free information session for all parents of students about the benefits of proper lice treatments in children. Afterward, there was a significant decline in the number of children missing school due to lice.

70. Educational Assistant: I used careful planning and strategies to help diffuse a situation with a high-needs student having issues in class without the need for intervention from the principal.

71. Daycare Worker: I successfully planned and executed a field trip for 25 children with staff without any issues while away from the facility.

72. Private Tutor: While tutoring a student for one term, I help them bring up their GPA by an entire point average, securing their spot in college.

73. Vice-Principal: I was acting vice-principal to support the teaching team at XYZ School for the [20__] year. After successful budgeting methods, they offered me a position to oversee the budgets for all schools in our district.

74. Principal: I accepted a promotion to the principal position after working as a teacher in the ABC Elementary School for the past five years.

75. Pre-School Teacher: I managed and implemented the yearly Christmas pageant for the preschool students while staying within budget and time restrictions.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing and trades positions contain several hard skills that are beneficial to mention at the top of your resume.

76. Night Shift Supervisor: For three years at X Plant, my team continuously outperformed their weekly goals. By doing this, we received recognition through the corporate office and received a bonus each year.

77. Health & Safety Coordinator: While employed, our organization’s Health & Safety statistics were consistently 10% or higher than other locations in our district.

78. Line Worker: I brought some inefficiencies to light with my manager on the product line that caused them to reanalyze our processes and, in turn, helped save time during packaging.

79. Welder Apprentice: I completed my welder apprentice education at the top of my class and secured a scholarship to obtain my Red Seal certification.

80. Production Floor Worker: I aided in implementing a waste minimization program with a team of 10 others over a month-long trial project. We successfully decreased the amount of waste from the production floor, saving time and money for the company.

81. Carpenter: I found that working with apprentices on the job site takes longer because they do not have the required tools. I helped bring in a company-wide materials-sharing program where employees can check out tools like a library and return them at the end of the day. This addition helped improve production significantly by minimizing time wasted.

82. Auto Mechanic: I received recognition from a corporate fleet client for exceptional service on last year’s fleet vehicles. This accolade helped draw in other new corporate clients for our company, increasing profits.

83. Warehouse Manager: I supervised a warehouse team with the least amount of stock loss due to damages for six months in a row.

84. Concrete Worker: I worked for several years on a team that was awarded monthly bonuses for my efficiency during the last six months.

85. Truck Driver: I minimized my overhead costs by 18% in three months by coordinating my trips to reduce load wait times.

86. Dispatch Operator: Over six months, I implemented a digital booking system that helped drivers identify upcoming loads and coordinate delivery schedules better than the previous platform.

Arts and Entertainment District

Whether you seek a social media position or continue a career in the arts, including examples of accomplishments can get your resume noticed.

87. Sound and Lighting Coordinator: I managed two shows simultaneously while arranging supplies and attending rehearsals for both events without any production issues.

88. Newspaper Columnist: The National Society of Newspaper Columnists awarded me The Sitting Duck Award last year for my work covering our local news during the pandemic.

89. Art Gallery Curator: I started an in-house art program last year for the local elementary school children. I helped to fundraise from donations from investors.

90. Public Relations Assistant: I worked on a team of three others in the mayor’s office to arrange the yearly Actors in the Park event. The event was successful without any debilitating problems during the entire week.

91. Movie Theater Attendant: My keen eye for detail helped bring awareness to some safety issues with several seats during my evening rounds. We secured these seats from the public until we could repair them, avoiding a disastrous customer service problem.

92. Magazine Editor: I successfully had all pre-print copies ready for production before the deadline to ensure everyone followed proper timelines. This time buffer allowed the management team to make necessary changes before heading to press, saving time and money.

93. Television News Anchor: I was promoted to the morning news host after exceptional work during the spotlight interviews I completed while working with the evening news crew.

Recreation

The health and recreation industry has many opportunities to list resume accomplishments that could be relevant in the workplace.

94. Golf Course Caddy: I provided exceptional service to all clients during my five years of employment that many asked for me by name, and I had a waitlist of clients.

95. Lifeguard: I used my training to help rescue a swimmer who went out too far from the beach and could not regain control. Without my help, they had a high chance of not making it back.

96. Rink Attendant: Due to my consistent promptness, I was able to help several individuals catch problems at the rink before hockey tournaments began.

97. Personal Trainer: I managed and guided over 20 clients with a 6-week program to help increase their fitness level and effectively reach their personal weight goals.

98. Soccer Coach: I was nominated and won Coach of the Year at the district banquet last year for our division.

99. Physiotherapist: The local basketball club management team offered the position of Team Physiotherapist after working with several athletes at the clinic during my three years of employment.

100. Yoga Instructor: I completed my yogi training with exceptional awareness that helped to bring more yoga styles to the local studio where I worked. By incorporating additional techniques, it increased revenue by attracting even more clients.

101. Swim Coach: I was a coach and mentor to Team USA’s Swim Team athletes for 2020. They went on to win several medals in Tokyo during the Olympics.

102. Chiropractor: I began a low-cost service this year for residents who require immediate care without current medical insurance.

Utilities and Service Sector

If your job search includes the utilities and service sector, often time-saving and cost-effective accomplishments are rated highly in potential employees.

103. Powerline Attendant: I managed to restore power from a down electrical line with my team in under one hour, where the average repair time is typically 2+ hours.

104. Water and Sewage Worker: I belonged to a team of four individuals who began the Water-Saving Initiative in Chicago last year. By educating residents about water-saving techniques, the overall water consumption was down by 12%.

105. Gas Meter Reader: I performed a record number of gas meter readings for August in our district.

106. Cable Television Installer: I provided exceptional install service with the most upgrades and add-ons per package out of all the members on my team for three months running.

107. Hotel Manager: I increased revenue by 15% last quarter by incorporating a rewards system for frequent and return clients.

108. Utilities Advisor: I aided several small businesses in the community last year to merge their utility services to help them save money on overhead costs.

109. Printing Service Rep: I used a combination of suppliers to help decrease overhead costs by 14% from capitalizing on corporate discounts and sales.

110. Furnace Install Specialist: I worked as part of the team to replace and install aging furnaces in the city’s seniors’ care homes. We completed this project quicker than anticipated helping to save our clients money on labor costs.

Professional Services

Professional organizations look for qualities in potential candidates, such as educational accomplishments that point to exceptional industry knowledge.

111. Photographer: I was featured in Digital Camera World Magazine last month for my unique take on photographing wildlife.

112. Architect: I received the Young Architect Award for [20__] for my work with the Boys and Girls Club.

113. Advertising Agent: I successfully brought in an additional ten clients in [20__] with confirmed advertising contracts totaling over $50,000.

114. Lab Tech: I used information from cutting-edge technology to help appeal to the Board of Directors for upgrades to outdated equipment. With my solid presentation, our lab received grant funding for additional equipment for the next fiscal year.

115. Interior Designer: I received the Business of the Year Award through the local Chamber of Commerce in [20__] for my work with the mayor’s office.

116. Healthcare Aide: I headed up a team of coworkers to organize an Evening With Santa for the children’s ward at the hospital on a strict budget and with only a week’s notice.

117. District Manager: I was promoted to District Manager from Store Manager after three years of increased sales and minimal product loss.

118. Nail Technician: I successfully increased my client base each month I operated through Sally’s Nails in Montana. This increase brought in more than 10% revenue than other technicians on staff.

119. Pest Control Specialist: I had the least amount of call-backs from clients than any other employee during my time at ABC Company, proving successful pest control measures.

120. Seamstress: After being recognized for continuous exceptional service and quality in the community, the local theater group offered me a position as the costume designer last year.

121. Family Physician: I started a Head-Start program for low-income families to receive free medical care for children under the age of four in our city. This project took almost nine months of private fundraising and planning with the committee I sat on.

122. Information Technologist Specialist: In only one month, I completely installed the entire mainframe system in a local legal office with a team of four other employees.

123. Psychologist: I started a free therapy group last month in our community for individuals who cannot afford private therapy sessions.

124. Podiatrist: I received and accepted an offer to manage the upcoming convention for the medical community in the next year.

125. Hair Stylist: I accepted a promotion to handle high-profile hair clients for our local news station after working with the salon for the past four years.

126. Used Car Salesman: My previous employer recognized me as the highest-grossing used car salesman in our dealership two years in a row.

Conclusion

The above are examples of great ways to highlight your remarkable personal achievements in your resume or cover letter when reaching out to potential employers. These exceptional skills can be the critical piece that gets you a job interview for the job you want.