Is "performed" a good resume verb?

It works for technical procedures where it is the standard term, such as performed audits, performed maintenance, or performed testing. For general tasks it is weak, because it hides what you did. Replace it with the specific action (conducted, completed, analyzed) and add the volume or the result.

What is another way to say "performed duties"?

Avoid the phrase entirely. List the two or three most important duties as separate bullets, each starting with a precise verb such as coordinated, processed, or prepared. Then add a number to each one: how many, how often, or what improved.

How often do job postings use "performed"?

"Performed" (counting "perform", "performs", "performed" or "performing") appears in 18.4% of the 2,902 full-text S&P 500 job postings we analyzed. It is most common in Finance postings (22.4%) and least common in Data & science postings (3%), among role families with at least 40 postings.

Which alternative to "performed" do employers use most?

Of the 11 alternatives on this page, "delivered" appears in the most postings (49.4%). For the recommended picks: "conducted" 3.3%, "completed" 33.3%, "carried out" 0.4%, "administered" 0.9%. A word being common in postings means recruiters will recognize it, but the best choice is still the one that matches the posting in front of you and what you actually did.

Original data · 2,902 full-text S&P 500 job postings

Another Word for "Performed" on a Resume: 11 Stronger Verbs

"Performed" is a placeholder verb: it says a task happened without saying what kind of work it was. It reads naturally for technical procedures (audits, tests, maintenance), but in most bullets you can name the actual action and let the result do the talking.

11 alternatives to "performed", by what you mean

Pick the group that matches what you did, then the word that fits. "Postings" is the share of the 2,902 full-text job descriptions that use the word in any form. Example bullets are illustrative, not taken from real resumes.

Word	Postings	Example bullet
You carried out a formal procedureUse for audits, tests, inspections, and assessments.
conducted	3.3%	Conducted 25 internal SOX control tests per quarter with no material findings.
carried out	0.4%	Carried out monthly safety inspections across 6 production lines.
administered	0.9%	Administered patient assessments for 20 clinic visits a day.
You finished defined workUse when completion and accuracy are the achievement.
completed	33.3%	Completed 300 equipment calibrations a year ahead of compliance deadlines.
executed	14.8%	Executed 1,200 regression test cases per release cycle.
delivered	49.4%	Delivered 40 client training sessions with an average rating of 4.8/5.
You examined or evaluated somethingUse for analytical or review work.
analyzed	11.1%	Analyzed failure data from 500 returns and traced 70% to one supplier part.
audited	10.5%	Audited 18 months of expense reports and recovered $45K in duplicate payments.
assessed	5.5%	Assessed 30 vendors against security requirements before contract renewal.
You kept equipment or systems runningUse for maintenance and operational upkeep.
serviced	0.4%	Serviced 15 HVAC units a week across commercial sites.
operated	39.1%	Operated CNC machinery to tolerances of 0.01 mm with a 0.5% scrap rate.

For comparison, "performed" itself: 18.4% (534 of 2,902 postings).

Before and after: rewriting "performed" bullets

Three example rewrites. They are illustrative, with made-up numbers, to show the pattern: a specific verb, what you acted on, and the result.

BeforePerformed data entry.

AfterEntered and verified 500 customer records a day at 99.8% accuracy.

Names the work and adds a quality measure.

BeforePerformed audits of financial records.

AfterAudited $12M in quarterly transactions and flagged 14 control gaps that were fixed before year-end.

A specific verb plus the scope and impact.

BeforePerformed various administrative duties.

AfterCoordinated travel and calendars for 4 executives, booking 200+ trips a year.

Replaces "various duties" with one concrete responsibility.

Which alternatives each role family uses

"Performed" is most common in Finance postings (22.4%) and least common in Data & science postings (3%). The right-hand column shows the three alternatives from this page that appear most often in each family's postings. Only families with at least 40 full-text postings are shown.

Role family	"performed"	Most-used alternatives
Engineering628 postings	12.7%	delivered (50.6%), operated (37.4%), completed (24.4%)
Sales368 postings	6.2%	delivered (54.3%), operated (51.6%), completed (38.6%)
Retail & service133 postings	9%	delivered (41.4%), completed (29.3%), operated (19.5%)
Operations109 postings	9.2%	delivered (43.1%), completed (26.6%), executed (20.2%)
Data & science101 postings	3%	delivered (42.6%), analyzed (25.7%), completed (18.8%)
Finance85 postings	22.4%	delivered (45.9%), analyzed (43.5%), operated (43.5%)
Marketing84 postings	4.8%	delivered (44%), executed (36.9%), operated (23.8%)
Product72 postings	8.3%	delivered (58.3%), operated (43.1%), completed (27.8%)
HR & people56 postings	17.9%	operated (51.8%), delivered (41.1%), completed (25%)

How to pick the right word: mirror the posting

Postings for clinical, lab, audit, and maintenance roles often use "perform" themselves ("perform inspections", "perform testing"). If yours does, keeping "performed" for that exact task can help the keyword match. Elsewhere, borrow the posting's more specific verb, such as conduct, administer, or execute.

Applicant tracking systems and recruiters search for the posting's own words, so the safest synonym is the one the job description already uses. Paste the posting into the free resume keyword generator to pull out its verbs and skills, then use the table above to replace the "performed" bullets that the posting does not ask for. For a wider list by category, see our resume action verbs guide; the dataset behind these numbers is described in our S&P 500 ATS study.

Frequently asked questions

Is "performed" a good resume verb?: It works for technical procedures where it is the standard term, such as performed audits, performed maintenance, or performed testing. For general tasks it is weak, because it hides what you did. Replace it with the specific action (conducted, completed, analyzed) and add the volume or the result.
What is another way to say "performed duties"?: Avoid the phrase entirely. List the two or three most important duties as separate bullets, each starting with a precise verb such as coordinated, processed, or prepared. Then add a number to each one: how many, how often, or what improved.
How often do job postings use "performed"?: "Performed" (counting "perform", "performs", "performed" or "performing") appears in 18.4% of the 2,902 full-text S&P 500 job postings we analyzed. It is most common in Finance postings (22.4%) and least common in Data & science postings (3%), among role families with at least 40 postings.
Which alternative to "performed" do employers use most?: Of the 11 alternatives on this page, "delivered" appears in the most postings (49.4%). For the recommended picks: "conducted" 3.3%, "completed" 33.3%, "carried out" 0.4%, "administered" 0.9%. A word being common in postings means recruiters will recognize it, but the best choice is still the one that matches the posting in front of you and what you actually did.

Related synonyms

Another word for executed Another word for handled Another word for delivered Another word for analyzed Another word for maintained All resume synonyms

Method. Share of 2,902 full-text job postings from S&P 500 careers sites, collected June 2026 (ATS Resume AI study). A posting counts once if any form of the word appears anywhere in its text (for "performed": perform, performs, performed, performing). Equal-opportunity and legal boilerplate is removed first; where a word's noun sense would swamp the verb (for example "process" or "program"), only verb forms are counted. Role families with fewer than 40 postings are not reported. Data generated: 2026-10-29.