I was talking to a client today about what kind of accomplishments he should list on his resume. This particular client is in a sales job so pretty much everything he does is measured with numbers. Measurable results are the very best accomplishments you can list on your resume.

Here are a couple of examples of measurable accomplishments that look great on a resume:

"Achieved 110% of 2006 quota of $50 million in sales."

"Created and launched a marketing program to promote our new software package that generated $400,000 in sales within the first month of the campaign."

Sometimes quantifying results can be challenging because (a) your job doesn't have any obvious metrics, or (b) because financial information at your company is highly confidential. The way to work around such constraints is to be creative about the information you share. For example:

If you are an administrative employee with few quantifiable results available for your job you can list accomplishments like this:

"Consistently received performance appraisals of 5 (outstanding) on a scale of 1 - 5 where 1 is needs improvement and 5 is outstanding"

or

"Awarded Employee of the Month in October 2006 by senior management for exceeding expectations and completing our department's voice mail implementation ahead of schedule"

If you can't discuss actual revenue or cost reduction numbers, you can describe percentages such as:

"Increased revenue in the North American operation by 70% between 2000 - 2004"

or

"Reduced costs by 50% by improving operating efficiencies and reducing employee turnover"

They key to a great resume is to describe your accomplishments rather than simply offering a laundry list of your day-to-day duties. Companies want to hire employees who deliver results and by listing accomplishments on your resume you show potential employers the kind of results that you can drive.