If you worked as a manager at a company, you could maintain your team's projects skillfully. Similarly, if you worked as an accountant, you would have experience maintaining spreadsheets and other data. 'Maintain' implies that you have the skills to keep things up and running.

Recruiters like knowing that candidates have this skill because it means they'll be efficient and can be trusted to follow through on work. 'Maintain' is truly a great word, but it should be used sparingly. If you use it more than once on your resume, you may come across as a little too robotic. Additionally, in your resume, use the past tense of 'maintain' ('maintained') unless you're discussing a current role.

To make your resume sound spontaneous, consider revising using other words that will give the same idea but are more specific. For example, instead of saying, 'Maintained all customer listings and sales on a database,' say that you 'Streamlined the company's business practices by developing a customer database and tracking sales.'

This helps you avoid overusing the same words in your resume using synonyms. Using different words to describe something makes your resume more gripping for the recruiter, increasing its effectiveness.

I've compiled some synonyms you can use instead of Maintain on your resume, followed by real examples I've written for clients (feel free to use them!).

Resume Synonyms for Maintain:

Administered
Channeled
Formulated
Orchestrated
Fortified
Revitalized
Conserved
Harmonized
Augmented
Secured
Supported
Stabilized
Handled
Organized
Enforced
Automated
Allocated
Balanced
Correlated
Controlled
Corrected
Engineered
Operated
Preserved
Remedied
Rebuilt
Regulated
Rehabilitated
Rejuvenated
Repaired
Restored
Reviewed
Saved
Streamlined
Sustained
Strengthened
Tightened

How to replace Maintain with a stronger action verb:

Let's look at examples of how you can remove and replace the overused phrase, Maintain, with a stronger synonym and alternative that is more effective at highlighting your achievements.

Before: Weak example using Maintain

• Maintain strong relationships with strategic partners and meet senior executives

⤸

After: Using a stronger synonym• Strengthened relationships with 6 strategic partners (including Expedia, Skyscanner and Airbnb) through follow-up meetings with C-suite executives.

Replacing Maintain with Administered ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain standard office duties and operations

⤸

After: Administered• Administered office operations which enhanced workflow by 20% through reorganising the filing system and upgrading office equipment

The changes removed vagueness in the original sentence by specifying the actions taken. I also added a numerical metric to show the impact of the administrative duties performed by the candidate.

Tip: I've prepared a ton of additional examples for you to give you inspiration. Please click on any of the following to expand and see real examples of how I've rewritten client bullet points.

Replacing Maintain with Channeled ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain open communication lines with staff

⤸

After: Channeled• Channeled regular communication among 50+ staff members, resulting in a 40% decrease in information lag and misunderstandings

The rewritten sentence spotlights the results of the improved communication lines quantitatively. It also establishes the extent of communication managed by the individual.

Replacing Maintain with Formulated ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain a standard procedure for monthly reports

⤸

After: Formulated• Formulated monthly reporting procedure which expedited the process by 25%, saving 15 hours per month

The revised bullet point is more impactful as it emphasizes the candidate’s ability to optimize procedures. The inclusion of specific metrics substantiates the claim and provides scale.

Replacing Maintain with Orchestrated ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain team dynamics for effective project delivery

⤸

After: Orchestrated• Orchestrated team dynamics among 5 team members to ensure 100% on-time project delivery over a period of two years

The revised bullet point shows a more proactive role played by the individual. It also uses quantifiable data to show the effectiveness of the orchestrated team dynamics.

Replacing Maintain with Fortified ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain customer relationships

⤸

After: Fortified• Fortified relationships with 15 key customer accounts leading to a 40% increase in sales over six months

The phrase 'Fortified relationships' emphasizes the individual's proactive contributions. Adding a quantifiable increase in sales also exemplifies the impact of the candidate's actions.

Replacing Maintain with Revitalized ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintained aged client accounts

⤸

After: Revitalized• Revitalized 30 dormant client accounts, triggering a regeneration of $1M in revenue within a year

The substitution of 'maintained' with 'revitalized' suggests an active role. Including the tangible impact in terms of revenue illustrates the level of positive effect the candidate had on the company.

Replacing Maintain with Conserved ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain departmental budget

⤸

After: Conserved• Conserved departmental expenditure by 20% ($500K) through rigorous cost management strategies

The modification creates a stronger image of the candidate managing funds effectively. The inclusion of numerical data highlights the magnitude of cost conservation achieved.

Replacing Maintain with Harmonized ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain an inclusive process across various departments

⤸

After: Harmonized• Harmonized processes across 5 departments, leading to a 15% boost in cross-functional efficiency

Using the verb 'harmonized' places more emphasis on the active role the candidate took. The metric conveys the results of the candidate's actions.

Replacing Maintain with Augmented ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain digital database

⤸

After: Augmented• Augmented the digital database efficiency by integrating an advanced search feature, saving 30 hours weekly for the team

The stronger verb and specific action taken makes it clear what the candidate did and how it brought value to the team.

Replacing Maintain with Secured ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintained website data

⤸

After: Secured• Secured website data by implementing state-of-the-art encryption systems, reducing security breaches by 75% over 12 months

The change replaces a passive action with a proactive one, with clear metrics that highlight the candidate's contributions to data security.

Replacing Maintain with Supported ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain contact with remote staff

⤸

After: Supported• Supported remote team of 20 members by implementing weekly check-ins and feedback loops, reducing project delays by 50%

The revised sentence explains how the candidate proactively supported a remote team and the tangible impact their action had on the speed of project completion.

Replacing Maintain with Stabilized ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain company servers

⤸

After: Stabilized• Stabilized company servers leading to a 15% increase in uptime and significantly reducing system interruptions

The updated sentence emphasizes the candidate’s role in stabilizing company servers and the results achieved, instead of merely stating they maintained servers.

Replacing Maintain with Handled ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintained compliance issues

⤸

After: Handled• Handled 100% of compliance issues, successfully passing four consecutive quarterly audits with zero discrepancies

The revamped statement specifies the number of compliance issues the candidate managed and their success in the role, evidenced by passing audits.

Replacing Maintain with Organized ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintain event scheduling

⤸

After: Organized• Organized and streamlined event scheduling, reducing preparation time by 30% and increasing attendee satisfaction rates by 25%

The improved statement switches from a passive to an active verb and adds specific metrics to showcase the candidate's direct impact on event scheduling and satisfaction rates.

Replacing Maintain with Enforced ▾

Before: Maintain

• Maintained company's safety standards

⤸

After: Enforced• Enforced company's safety standards, resulting in three years of zero recorded accidents within facility

The revised statement uses a strong action verb to indicate active involvement and provides a meaningful statistic to demonstrate the positive results of enforcing safety standards.

How to use these synonyms in practice

We've put together an infographic to give you more examples of how to put this into practice. Note the use of strong action verbs instead of words like Maintain.

More resume bullet point samples that use strong synonyms

How to use Designed, on a resume:

• Designed, executed, and optimized digital marketing campaign on Google's AdWords for $20B CPG company, yielding 20% ROI improvements.

How to use Assessed on a resume:

• Assessed the product portfolio and created a brand turnaround strategy for a global fashion company; conducted qualitative interviews with industry experts and quantitative analysis to determine barriers to purchasing and distribution.

How to use Managed on a resume:

• Managed team of four analysts to prepare training and proposal materials for strategic development of relationship with client.

How to use Generated on a resume:

• Generated insights on customer churn and renewal rates from data tables with 100M rows in SQL.

How to use Built on a resume:

• Built complete investment pitch books for 4 deals at advanced stages and liaised with 12 prospective international co-investors.

How to use Raised on a resume:

• Raised awareness by regularly organizing and hosting collection and charity drives throughout local schools; increased donations by 50% since 2016.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is another word for Maintain on a resume?

Below are some alternative words and synonyms to add to your resume instead of Maintain:

Allocated
Regulated
Controlled
Strengthened
Rehabilitated
Balanced

What is a better word for Maintain on a resume?

Synonyms you can use instead of the overused phrase Maintain include:

Reviewed
Correlated
Controlled
Strengthened
Sustained
Preserved

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