PSU Library - BA 530

This guide has been developed to direct you to library resources and Web resources that are relevant to each of your assignments. All of the library databases listed below are accessible from any campus computer, and from your home computer. For directions on accessing the databases from home see the Off Campus Access Page.

Searching the Business Literature

Searching the business literature includes search for books in the Library's catalog (Vikat) and searching for articles using the Library's business databases.

Before you begin searching: generate a list of keywords related to your topic. Distill your topic down to the most essential concepts, and then think of some synonyms for those concepts that might help you refine, narrow or broaden your search.

Tips for searching the catalog:

To search the catalog, try entering keywords from your subject in the search box and clicking on "Search everything."
It helps to limit your search to the "PSU-MAIN" library so you don't retrieve all the government publications at first. You can do this in the box to the right of the main search box.
Look at your results and choose a title that sounds like it's at least in the ballpark. Click on "View" to see the rest of the record. Now look at the subject headings assigned to this book. You can click on these headings and retrieve all of the other books with the same subject headings. This is an excellent way to find other key words to search on for your topic.
Once you find a book, you will see the call number at the top of the record, and you can then find the book in the Library according to the call number locations.
If you are taking the course through the eMBA program, you can request a book be sent to you through this online book request form.

Tips for searching the databases:

You will find the business databases listed by type of database. The "article" databases are listed first, and these are what you'll want to use to find articles from the business literature on your topic.
Try several databases. They vary in terms of what publications are covered, and you will need to search in more than one.
Use the same strategy as above to generate keywords for searching.
Take time to evaluate your results. Don't just pick the first few articles that appear on your screen!
- An article from Business Week, for example, is quite different from one published in the Harvard Business Review.
- Try to determine whether the source is scholarly, trade or industry oriented, or popular.
- Does it offer empirical research?
- Does it offer the depth of discussion needed for your research?
- For more information on how to evaluate journal articles, click here.

Use the HELP features of the databases. Each database has different search limits, date ranges, stop words, and wild card characters.
Many of the articles you find will be full-text. For those that are not full-text, you will have to consult the Library catalog to see if we carry the journal in print.
If we do not carry a journal you need, you can submit an online request for the article through interlibrary loan.
If you are an eMBA student and you find an article that is not full-text, you can request the article be sent to you by using the online article request form.
For more information about how to search for articles, or how journals are arranged in the PSU Library, check out the Journal and Magazine Articles help page.

Company Analysis

Annual Reports

Most annual reports are available on a company's web site. You may have to follow several links to get to "investor relations" or "about the company" or "company information." But, eventually, you should be able to get to the annual report. Most annual reports are in PDF format, which means you will need to download Adobe Acrobat to read them. Click here to download Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Annual Report Gallery
http://www.reportgallery.com/
Archive of over 2200 annual reports. Covers most Fortune 500 companies.

Company Financials

Global Access (Disclosure)
Provides access to financial and management data for U.S. and international companies. Data include 10-year financial histories, company profiles, stock market performance, and peer analysis. Usage of Disclosure's Global Access is limited solely to research connected with or related to teaching, academic, or other scholarly activities. Under no circumstances may this database be used for commercial purposes.

Investext
Database providing access to reports and forecasts prepared by top Wall Street and international brokerage firms. More than 11,000 U.S. and international companies and 53 industries are covered.

EDGAR Database of corporate information
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. EDGAR (the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval system) provides access to submissions by companies and others who are required by law to file forms with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Documents include 10-K's, 10-Q's, Proxy Statements, etc.

Company Profiles

Intellidocs through ABI-Inform
ABI-Inform offers company profiles through its Intellidocs service, which links you to Hoover's profiles (an expanded version of what is publicly available through Hoover's online listed below). To retrieve an Intellidocs profile, simply search on a company name in ABI-Inform, and retrieve any article that mentions the company. Wherever the company is mentioned, you will find a link to the company profile.

Business.com Company Center
http://www.business.com/companies/

Hoover's online
http://www.hoovers.com

CEO Express
http://www.ceoexpress.com/

Market Share

Market share reporter. Gale Research Co. Annual.
Reports market share data for companies and over 2000 products, primarily for the U.S.
HF5410 .M35, latest 2nd floor Reference

World Market Share reporter. Gale Research Co. Annual.
Reports market share data for international companies.
HF5410. W67, latest 2nd floor / Reference

Ward's business directory. Gale Research Co. Annual.
Lists companies by SIC code, ranks them and provides sales for each company and a total for the industry.
HG4057 .A532, latest 2nd floor / Reference

Industry Analysis

Investext
Full-text reports for over 53 industries. Drop-down menu contains major industry categories. Add keywords to narrow the search. For example, "Beverages" is one of the industry categories. By adding the term "beer" to the keyword search box, you will retrieve industry reports for the beer industry.

Associations on the Net
http://www.ipl.org/ref/AON
Trade associations often provide valuable market research data on their web sites. This site provides access to a searchable database of trade associations. Search by keyword for industry.

These sources can be found in the business reference area of the PSU Library (in the basement) and are also available at most academic and public libraries throughout the State.

Almanac of Business and Industrial Financial Ratios
Reference HF5681 .R25 T68


Research Guide
		This guide has been developed to direct you to library resources and Web resources that are relevant to each of your assignments. All of the library databases listed below are accessible from any campus computer, and from your home computer. For directions on accessing the databases from home see the Off Campus Access Page. Sections of this guide: Searching the Business Literature - Books and Articles Company Analysis Industry Analysis Searching the Business Literature Searching the business literature includes search for books in the Library's catalog (Vikat) and searching for articles using the Library's business databases. Before you begin searching: generate a list of keywords related to your topic. Distill your topic down to the most essential concepts, and then think of some synonyms for those concepts that might help you refine, narrow or broaden your search. Tips for searching the catalog: To search the catalog, try entering keywords from your subject in the search box and clicking on "Search everything." It helps to limit your search to the "PSU-MAIN" library so you don't retrieve all the government publications at first. You can do this in the box to the right of the main search box. Look at your results and choose a title that sounds like it's at least in the ballpark. Click on "View" to see the rest of the record. Now look at the subject headings assigned to this book. You can click on these headings and retrieve all of the other books with the same subject headings. This is an excellent way to find other key words to search on for your topic. Once you find a book, you will see the call number at the top of the record, and you can then find the book in the Library according to the call number locations. If you are taking the course through the eMBA program, you can request a book be sent to you through this online book request form. Tips for searching the databases: You will find the business databases listed by type of database. The "article" databases are listed first, and these are what you'll want to use to find articles from the business literature on your topic. Try several databases. They vary in terms of what publications are covered, and you will need to search in more than one. Use the same strategy as above to generate keywords for searching. Take time to evaluate your results. Don't just pick the first few articles that appear on your screen! An article from Business Week, for example, is quite different from one published in the Harvard Business Review. Try to determine whether the source is scholarly, trade or industry oriented, or popular. Does it offer empirical research? Does it offer the depth of discussion needed for your research? For more information on how to evaluate journal articles, click here. Use the HELP features of the databases. Each database has different search limits, date ranges, stop words, and wild card characters. Many of the articles you find will be full-text. For those that are not full-text, you will have to consult the Library catalog to see if we carry the journal in print. If we do not carry a journal you need, you can submit an online request for the article through interlibrary loan. If you are an eMBA student and you find an article that is not full-text, you can request the article be sent to you by using the online article request form. For more information about how to search for articles, or how journals are arranged in the PSU Library, check out the Journal and Magazine Articles help page. Company Analysis Annual Reports Most annual reports are available on a company's web site. You may have to follow several links to get to "investor relations" or "about the company" or "company information." But, eventually, you should be able to get to the annual report. Most annual reports are in PDF format, which means you will need to download Adobe Acrobat to read them. Click here to download Adobe Acrobat Reader. *Annual Report Gallery* http://www.reportgallery.com/ Archive of over 2200 annual reports. Covers most Fortune 500 companies. Company Financials *Global Access (Disclosure)* Provides access to financial and management data for U.S. and international companies. Data include 10-year financial histories, company profiles, stock market performance, and peer analysis. Usage of Disclosure's Global Access is limited solely to research connected with or related to teaching, academic, or other scholarly activities. Under no circumstances may this database be used for commercial purposes. *Investext* Database providing access to reports and forecasts prepared by top Wall Street and international brokerage firms. More than 11,000 U.S. and international companies and 53 industries are covered. EDGAR Database of corporate information U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. EDGAR (the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval system) provides access to submissions by companies and others who are required by law to file forms with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Documents include 10-K's, 10-Q's, Proxy Statements, etc. Company Profiles Intellidocs through ABI-Inform ABI-Inform offers company profiles through its Intellidocs service, which links you to Hoover's profiles (an expanded version of what is publicly available through Hoover's online listed below). To retrieve an Intellidocs profile, simply search on a company name in ABI-Inform, and retrieve any article that mentions the company. Wherever the company is mentioned, you will find a link to the company profile. *Business.com Company Center* http://www.business.com/companies/ *Hoover's online* http://www.hoovers.com *CEO Express* http://www.ceoexpress.com/ Market Share Market share reporter. Gale Research Co. Annual. Reports market share data for companies and over 2000 products, primarily for the U.S. HF5410 .M35, latest 2nd floor Reference *World Market Share reporter. Gale Research Co. Annual. Reports market share data for international companies. HF5410. W67, latest 2nd floor / Reference Ward's business directory. Gale Research Co. Annual. Lists companies by SIC code, ranks them and provides sales for each company and a total for the industry. HG4057 .A532, latest 2nd floor / Reference Industry Analysis Library Databases:* Any of the article databases can be searched by industry name or SIC code. What's an SIC code? An SIC code is a number assigned by the U. S. government to an industry, not to an individual company. The assignment is made according to the goods produced or services rendered by the industry. Most business reference sources list companies and/or statistical information on an industry by SIC code, either through an index, or through chapter arrangement. To effectively use them, you must know an SIC code you would like to search. Business census information is based on the SIC code. Private services, in turn, attach SIC codes to companies, allowing a patron to identify companies working in a particular industry and to gather statistical information on an industry. The SIC code system was recently changed to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS and pronounced "Nakes"), a system created by Canada, the United States, and Mexico. One of the big changes in the NAICS system is its inclusion of the service and information industries. The following two print sources identify SIC and NAICS code numbers. Both are kept on the shelves behind the Reference Desk on the 2nd floor: North American Industry Classification System Standard Industrial Classification Manual SIC codes can be searched online through OSHA. SIC and NAICS conversion tables can be found at the Census Bureau. *Investext* Full-text reports for over 53 industries. Drop-down menu contains major industry categories. Add keywords to narrow the search. For example, "Beverages" is one of the industry categories. By adding the term "beer" to the keyword search box, you will retrieve industry reports for the beer industry. F&S Index Plus Text has especially good coverage of trade and industry publications. Lexis Nexis Academic Universe can be searched by Industry News. Web Sites: *Hoovers Industry Snapshots* http://www.hoovers.com/industry/resources.html *Business.com Industry Center* http://www.business.com/industry_profiles/ *Associations on the Net* http://www.ipl.org/ref/AON Trade associations often provide valuable market research data on their web sites. This site provides access to a searchable database of trade associations. Search by keyword for industry. Print Reference Sources for Industry Information: These sources can be found in the business reference area of the PSU Library (in the basement) and are also available at most academic and public libraries throughout the State. *Almanac of Business and Industrial Financial Ratios* Reference HF5681 .R25 T68 Encyclopedia of American Industries Reference HC102 .E53 2001 *Encyclopedia of Emerging Industries* Reference HD2324 .E528 *Encyclopedia of Global Industries* Reference HD2324 .E53 *Industry Norms and Key Business Ratios* Reference HD9724 .I514 *Manufacturing USA* Reference HD9721 .M364 *Moody’s Industry Review* Reference HG4961.M68 *Standard and Poor’s Industry Surveys* Reference HG4905.S66 *U.S. Industry and Trade Outlook* Reference HC106.5 .A17

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Page developed and maintained by: Elizabeth Howell Send comments to: howell@pdx.edu
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