To describe your skills that involve keeping something in good condition, use the action verb 'maintaining' when writing a resume. This skill is especially important if the job you're applying for requires that you keep track of many different aspects of an organization's operations.

Maintaining, a present participle of the verb maintain, makes an excellent word choice for your resume. It shows that you're responsible, organized, and detail-oriented! But be mindful of how frequently you use your keywords—recruiters may find your resume repetitive if you repeatedly use the exact words. You should use them strategically, not repetitively. Additionally, using the verb's past tense is appropriate when writing about what you've accomplished in past positions.

You can fix this by swapping the word 'maintaining' with synonyms. To illustrate, if you have a bullet point that says 'maintaining,' using synonyms like 'sustained' or 'reinforced' will give you a wider range of words to use in your descriptions and make them more unique.

Using these techniques will show off how well-rounded you are as an employee. If you're applying for a job requiring multiple skill sets—like project management or marketing—using synonyms can help showcase your versatility in keeping things running smoothly and efficiently.

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

Resume Synonyms for Maintaining:

Bolstered
Reinforced
Sustained
Preserved
Scheduled
Conserved
Regulated
Systematized
Protected
Secured
Bolstered
Reinforced
Sustained
Preserved
Scheduled
Conserved
Regulated
Systematized
Protected
Secured
Nourished
Retained
Perpetuated
Saved
Serviced
Rehabilitated
Restored
Rebuilt
Patched
Reconstructed

How to replace Maintaining with a stronger action verb:

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

Before: Weak example using Maintaining

• Maintained regular meeting minutes and correspondence for multiple clients

⤸

After: Using a stronger synonym• Prepared meeting notes, regular correspondence, or reports, such as presentations or expenditures, statistics, or monthly reports for approximately 10 clients per week. .

Replacing Maintaining with Bolstered ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained key business partnerships

⤸

After: Bolstered• Bolstered key business partnerships by conducting regular communication, leading to 30% increase in mutual business ventures.

As a recruiter, I opted for 'bolstered' as it provides a strong action verb and conveys a proactive role. The 'after' statement quantitatively shows what was achieved, making it more interesting and impactful for the reader.

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 Maintaining with Reinforced ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained coding standards

⤸

After: Reinforced• Reinforced coding standards, improving overall software efficiency by 25%.

I replaced 'maintained' with 'reinforced' to portray a more proactive role. I included a specific metric (increased efficiency by 25%), which clearly shows the impact made through the candidate's action.

Replacing Maintaining with Sustained ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained high level of product quality

⤸

After: Sustained• Sustained high level of product quality which led to a 15% increase in customer satisfaction.

I opted for 'sustained' which shows diligent performance. The addition of a percentage in customer satisfaction provides a clear measure of success and impact.

Replacing Maintaining with Preserved ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained company culture during changes

⤸

After: Preserved• Preserved company culture during major team restructuring, minimizing staff turnover by 20%.

The term 'preserved' implies careful attention to detail. By adding a reduced turnover rate and mentioning the context (restructuring), this highlights the candidate’s exceptional performance during challenging times.

Replacing Maintaining with Scheduled ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained routine system checkups

⤸

After: Scheduled• Scheduled and executed routine system checkups, resulting in a 30% decrease in downtime.

Using 'scheduled', I was able to highlight organizational skills. Adding a clear metric provides a tangible benefit from the candidate's actions.

Replacing Maintaining with Conserved ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained the budget within limits

⤸

After: Conserved• Conserved company resources by effectively managing the budget, saving $15k annually.

The rewrite focuses on financial savings (a hard, easily understandable metric). 'Conserved' indicates careful management, giving a sense of responsibility and smart resource allocation.

Replacing Maintaining with Regulated ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained workflow efficiently

⤸

After: Regulated• Regulated workflow in the team, reducing project completion times by 20%.

The word 'regulated' shows authority and responsibility. The inclusion of a specific, quantifiable improvement showcases the impact of the candidate's action.

Replacing Maintaining with Systematized ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained well-organized files and resources

⤸

After: Systematized• Systematized resource locations and digital files, reducing the retrieval time by 40%.

'Systematized' suggests an operational improvement, along with the inclusion of a beneficial outcome (reducing retrieval time) provides practical evidence of improvements made.

Replacing Maintaining with Protected ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained safety of all employees

⤸

After: Protected• Protected employees' wellbeing proactively, resulting in zero major incidents during my tenure.

'Protected' shows a proactive stance towards safety. The clear safety record demonstrated is a testament to the success of the candidate's efforts.

Replacing Maintaining with Secured ▾

Before: Maintaining

• Maintained cybersecurity protocols

⤸

After: Secured• Secured company data by implementing robust cybersecurity practices, preventing any major data breaches.

With 'secured', we highlight the candidate's active role in preventing breaches, a pressing concern in today's digital landscape. This strengthens their reliability and expertise prominently.

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 Maintaining.

More resume bullet point samples that use strong synonyms

How to use Promoted on a resume:

• Promoted to Associate Consultant in 2 years (1 year in advance); the only member in a cohort of 45 Analysts to be fast-tracked.

How to use Prepared on a resume:

• Prepared a 100 page pitch book summarizing findings and presented analysis to managing directors.

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 Developed on a resume:

• Developed a prototype to identify key influencers on Twitter using clustering techniques over 100,000 data points in Python.

How to use Led on a resume:

• Led five developers to establish client's ERP system; identified $1.5MM in cost savings, and secured $1MM+ in additional work for Accenture.

How to use Overhauled on a resume:

• Overhauled the company's website by increasing graphics usage by 50% and mobile responsiveness by 100%; generated 70% more leads via email capture forms, reduced bounce rate by 20%.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is another word for Maintaining on a resume?

Here are some synonyms for commonly repeated words, like Maintaining, I see on resumes:

Serviced
Conserved
Scheduled
Rehabilitated
Sustained
Reinforced

What can I say instead of Maintaining on a resume?

You should vary up your language on your resume, instead of using Maintaining over and over again. Good synonyms to use instead include:

Sustained
Saved
Reconstructed
Restored
Perpetuated
Patched

Get a free resume review: Find out if your action verbs are strong enough.

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