How To Show Your Problem-Solving Skills on Your Resume and Cover Letter

You can make problem-solving a key theme of your resume and cover letter by giving concrete examples from your background. The following guide will show you how.

Problem-Solving on Your Resume

To develop strong examples of problem-solving on your resume, follow these steps:

To develop strong examples of problem-solving on your resume, follow these steps:

Step 1: Brainstorm past problems

For each relevant job in your work history, brainstorm the general business problems you’ve solved or alleviated. These may include:

• Cost increases
• Employee skill or knowledge gaps
• External audit findings
• High staff turnover
• Low employee morale
• New regulations
• Poor customer relations
• Process inefficiencies

Step 2: Pinpoint your actions

Now identify your core actions concerning those problems. The following verbs list can help you explore and determine how you’ve tackled past challenges. Notice how each verb indicates some problem or issue that hindered (or threatened to hinder) business performance, as opposed to more neutral/positive resume verbs like “Created,” “Enhanced,” or “Introduced.”

• Addressed
• Avoided
• Cut
• Decreased
• Eliminated
• Fixed
• Halted
• Isolated
• Lowered
• Mitigated
• Overcame
• Pared back
• Prevented
• Reduced
• Removed
• Resolved
• Restored
• Revitalized
• Stopped
• Troubleshot
• Turned around

Step 3: Explain measures you took

Having identified past problems and your core actions in response to them, try to be more specific. How did you solve or alleviate the problem? Describe the strategies or projects you developed. For instance, did you address skill gaps by devising a new training program? Or fix service issues by introducing a better way to engage with customers? If so, what did that new service approach entail?

After completing these steps, you should have the basis for one or more strong examples of problem-solving on your resume, such as:

• Developed a new training program that resolved critical gaps in the sales team’s product knowledge
• Restored positive relationship with a major client by paying regular in-person visits to demonstrate new product features and address any concerns

Step 4: Quantify your results

If possible, quantify the example with hard numbers. Show how your problem-solving made a tangible impact on $ revenue, % growth, or other business metrics. For example:

• Restored positive relationship with a major client by paying regular in-person visits to demonstrate new product features and address any concerns. Efforts prevented loss of a $500,000 account

Detailed bullet points like this one are the cornerstone of a great resume. Giving concrete examples of your problem-solving talents shows hiring managers you’re ready to tackle similar challenges at their organization.

(Optional) Step 5: Use the Problem, Action, Result method

You can further develop the example using the Problem, Action, Result (PAR) approach. This approach is a slight variation of the STAR interview method. With the PAR method, you write out one or more distinct lines to describe:

• The particular problem you encountered
• The action you took to solve the problem
• The positive result your solution produced

The PAR method is a great way to highlight your top achievements. However, remember that this structure takes up much more space than a regular bullet point and can be a bit ponderous if you overuse it. To keep your resume manageable, consider using PAR for just your top three achievements from your career so far.

Problem-Solving on Your Cover Letter

The four-step process above lets you feature problem-solving on your cover letter, as long as you’ve structured your letter to include bullet highlights. Copy over the examples you’d like to include in this document. Since the bullet points will appear on your letter out of context, cite the associated job and company in brackets at the end of the line. For example:

• Developed a new training program that resolved critical gaps in the sales team’s product knowledge [Sales Director, ESS Corp.]

Don’t worry about repeating these resume points on your cover letter. A little repetition across job search documents doesn’t undermine your application and can make it easier for the hiring manager to register your top selling points from your experience. Take care not to repeat more than a few sentences or bullet points. Keep the overall focus of your cover letter on why the job and company at hand appeal to you.

Side Note

You can also emphasize problem-solving in the introductory sections of your resume. Consider these four options:

• Incorporate one of your problem-solving examples in your Profile description. Add a sentence that starts with “Achievements include…” or “Recent achievements include…” and then plug in whatever highlight you’d like to showcase.

• Add a line to your Profile stating your general skill at problem-solving. For example:

Also, in your Profile section, include the adjective “Resourceful” or “Solution-focused” ahead of your professional title. For example:

In your Key Skills section, add one or more of these terms as they relate to your background:

• Complex problem-solving
• Cost reduction and elimination
• Operational turnarounds
• Risk management and mitigation
• Technical troubleshooting

Frequently Asked Questions About Problem-Solving Skills on Your Resume and Cover Letter

Jacob Meade

Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW, ACRW)

Jacob Meade is a resume writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience. His writing method centers on understanding and then expressing each person’s unique work history and strengths toward their career goal. Jacob has enjoyed working with jobseekers of all ages and career levels, finding that a clear and focused resume can help people from any walk of life. He is an Academy Certified Resume Writer (ACRW) with the Resume Writing Academy, and a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) with the Professional Association of Resume Writers & Career Coaches.