Time management is critical to small-business success: When you have fewer people to get things done, efficiency is key. Yet we all find ways to while away work time with activities other than actual work, such as using social media.

But Twitter, Facebook, and other sites offer plenty legitimate business uses, too. As the line between business and personal becomes increasingly blurred, how do you make sure your employees aren’t goofing off without micro-managing or destroying morale?

The Intuit Small Business Blog recently checked in with Suzanne Lucas (pictured) — also known as the Evil HR Lady — to get her take on the topic.

ISBB: What’s the current wisdom on managing how my employees spend their time? How much is too much when it comes to non-work-related internet use, phone calls, errands, side projects, and so on?

Lucas: In the old days, you could tell instantly if an employee was goofing off, because the difference between work and not work was obvious. In today’s wired world, unless you are actually looking over their shoulders, it’s impossible to tell if that tapping on a BlackBerry is a work email or a Facebook status update.

My suggestion is to look at overall results, and don’t worry about what your employee is doing right now. Some people’s brains work better with a bunch of little breaks; some people’s don’t. If someone isn’t performing at the proper level, speak to that person about performance. If they are spending too much time on the internet, address that as a performance issue.

It’s possible that you can have two employees who spend identical amounts of time goofing off, but one is a high performer and the other is a low performer. The latter needs to spend less time on the phone, internet, or whatever, and the former should be rewarded for good work. It’s not about butt-in-seat time anymore. It’s about performance.

I’m OK with non-work-related conversations and having some fun in the office. But what do I do about political, religious, or other hot-button topics at the water cooler?

You can’t avoid all of those things, nor do you really want to. The only restriction I would place on it is to keep everything legal — nothing that can be construed as sexual harassment, racial discrimination, etc.

Most of my employees manage their time just fine, so I take a hands-off approach. But one employee takes advantage of that. What’s the best way to deal with her without disrupting everyone else?

Handle that employee. You don’t have to treat everyone the same, you just have to treat everyone fairly. If she’s taking advantage of it, you need to correct it. You may need to be extremely clear, as some people just do not get it.

What non-work activities should be strictly prohibited?

Porn is obvious. Gambling. Drinking. Drugs. Otherwise, it’s totally dependent on the environment and needs. I was going to say online gaming, but then I realized I have two friends who are World of Warcraft addicts. [They’re] also Ivy League master’s degree holders, genius programmers, and have a tremendous workload which they successfully accomplish. So, you may run into Eric’s cube and see him playing WoW and declare that he is wasting time and should be fired — except that he’s already out-produced everyone else in the office. Again, it’s all about performance.

by Kevin Casey 

The days of hanging a Help Wanted sign in the store window are disappearing. Job seekers and employers are turning to more modern methods, from LinkedIn to social networks, to find each other. But whatever your hiring scenario, you probably still request resumes from serious applicants. Once those resumes start flooding your in-box, how do you sift through the pile?

Although most small-business owners may know exactly what they’re looking for in a candidate, there’s a tried-and-true art to reading resumes that can’t be replaced by newer science, such as keyword screening, says Jennifer McClure, president of Unbridled Talent, a consulting firm that specializes in HR and recruiting.

So, what’s the best way to read a resume in 2012? The Intuit Small Business Blog asked McClure to provide a few pointers.

ISBB: How has the practice of reading a resume changed in recent years?

McClure: While the science of resume review has certainly evolved in recent years — electronic submission and review, keyword screening tools, resume parsers, etc. — in my opinion, the art has remained relatively unchanged. Recruiters who find the best talent are those who read between the lines to identify accomplishments and results as well as potential, versus inexperienced or poor recruiters who match keywords, random experience requirements, and unrelated competencies. Strong recruiters also realize that job seekers aren’t professional resume writers and can look past small imperfections that aren’t relevant to future success.

What’s the first thing a small-business owner should read when reviewing a resume? Second? Third?

When reviewing resumes, I’m always drawn to the objective statement or professional summary first. Ideally, applicants should make sure that the information at the top of their resume is targeted (who they are, what type of role they’re seeking, and why they’re a great fit for that role) and succinct, no more than one to three brief sentences. A well-written, targeted objective can start the resume review process off on a “this is a potential candidate” note. A generic or poorly written one, such as “team player looking for a company where I can apply my skills to help them grow,” opens the door to the No pile.

Second, I look at the most recent job title and employer to see if the person has held a similar role or is on track for the position I’m trying to fill. For example, if I’m looking for a CFO, I’m thinking “possibility” if I see titles like CFO, VP of Finance, or Director of Finance. But if I see Accounts Payable Clerk or Cost Accounting Manager first, then I would assume the person is not a fit — and even more so if the most recent position is not even in the fields of accounting or finance.

Third, my eye is drawn to numbers on a resume. I’m looking for accomplishments and how a person has created positive change or impacted results in their previous roles. Bullet points that include dollar signs, percentages, and the like are ideal. What doesn’t catch attention? Listing job duties and phrases such as “responsible for,” “participated in,” “managed,” and so on.

What are the biggest warning signs I should watch out for?

Resumes that include gaps in employment, especially long ones, are typically suspect. The mind starts to ask natural questions about what happened. Why did the person leave their last job? Why were they unsuccessful at obtaining another job prior to leaving that position or in a reasonable time frame thereafter? Life situations and depressed economic conditions may have resulted in some legitimate gaps in employment. However, it’s incumbent upon the applicant to answer the obvious questions up front and fill in the gaps on the resume.

How can employers who are short on time and staring at a giant stack of resumes get through the pile efficiently?

I’d never recommend speed-screening resumes. Hiring decisions are too important and potentially long-term. It just doesn’t make sense to cut corners during this process. That being said, to use time more efficiently during the resume screening process, I recommend reviewing all of the resumes submitted in one sitting, if possible, and, based upon initial impressions, tagging them or placing them in three categories: Interview, Possible, and No. This can be a quick way to identify the resumes that warrant a more in-depth review, although you may miss an undiscovered gem or two by cutting corners.

by Kevin Casey

Many people decide to become entrepreneurs while they’re slogging away for someone else. If you’re passionate about your job — yet would prefer to be your own boss — shifting into a consulting role may be the ideal path to becoming a small-business owner. As a consultant, you can use your accumulated knowledge to help others learn to manage their operations more effectively, perhaps even starting with your current employer.

According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the top six fields for consulting are accounting, computer and information systems, environment and conservation, human resources, management, and sales, marketing, and public relations.

Here’s how to evolve from an employee into a consultant:

• Make the transition slowly. It may be difficult to give up your full-time job — and the security of a steady paycheck — to launch a small business. If that’s the case, don’t be afraid to wade into the consulting pool instead of diving in head-first. As long as you don’t compete with (or poach clients from) your employer, they’re unlikely to take issue with you starting a consulting agency. Consider these tips for starting a business while still employed from the National Federation of Independent Business. Once you’ve established that a client base covers your basic expenses, you can leap into full-time consulting.
• Tout the high-profile projects you worked on as an employee. When you create your consulting website and other marketing materials, provide comprehensive details about the role you played in your employer’s initiatives — and how your efforts helped the business. Invest time and effort into producing these case studies, because they’ll help you to sell your experience to future customers. You may want to run any potentially sensitive material by your boss as a professional courtesy; she may ask you to keep certain details confidential (particularly if a third party is involved).
• Obtain the certifications you’ll need to get taken seriously. Even if you have decades of experience in your field, you may want to beef up your credentials as an independent consultant. For instance, if you’re billing yourself as a PPC marketing consultant, your experience running keyword campaigns for a large company will certainly count, but getting certified in Google’s AdWords program may give you a better shot at winning business.
• Determine your marketing strategy. Being a free agent means you’re now responsible for promoting your own business. If your previous employer dissolves or scales back, you may be able to take on some of its clients as your own. Otherwise, you’ll need to start from scratch. Analyze your competitors to determine what services they offer — and where they advertise and promote themselves. Follow their examples, but don’t be afraid to conceive and test new initiatives, too.