The most effective change most resume writers can make is to avoid listing the responsibilities of the position—as if writing a job description—and focus instead on your notable successes and contributions. List personal accomplishments, not daily activities, and use specific numbers whenever possible, such as ranked #2 out of 10.

Most employers are not that interested in learning the fine details of each of your jobs–they can ask you for more details in an interview if necessary. What they really want to know is how well you performed in the position.

List the successes for which you can take full, or at least primary, credit; don’t list trivial items, though, as that will give the appearance you contributed nothing of substance. Obviously, any performance based award you received from your employer should be noted.

If you are a manager, listing accomplishments can be challenging, as they often involve the efforts of many subordinates. For example, an increase in sales achieved by a division may be directly attributable to the efforts of the division’s sales manager, but the cause and effect relationship must be spelled out on the resume or it may appear that the manager was simply in the right place at the right time. A secondary benefit of elaborating on one’s role in effecting change is that the hiring manager sees the method underlying the success, instead of just the before and after.

Michael G Smith