libr2195 business weeks 2015
TRANSCRIPT
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 1
Table of Contents
This handbook provides information for the business weeks of LIBR 2195. In addition, Linda will bring materials to
emphasize company and industry sources of information. Let Dean know if you have questions: [email protected]
I. Where do you start with business questions? Part I (IDENTIFY question types) 2 a. Business portals and pathfinders
II. Where do you start with business questions? Part II (SEARCH library catalogues) 3
a. Sample business questions by type 4
III. Article indexes and databases in business (SEARCHING & FINDING) 4 a. What to look for in a business database? 5
IV. Annual reports of companies 6
a. Financial reporting
V. Top company rankings 8
VI. Government publications 9 a. BC and Canadian government websites
VII. FIND information about industries 12
VIII. FIND news about businesses in Canada 13
IX. Glossary (USE FOR THE QUIZ WORTH 5%) 14
Learning objectives:
1. To use sources of information to answer business questions about industry classification, competitive analysis, financial, market and industry data, and general business news
2. To look at sources of information in business that suit a specific research request or reference question (with an emphasis on Canadian, British Columbia and local sources)
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 2
WHERE DO YOU START with BUSINESS QUESTIONS (Part I)?
1. Identify a business question, topic or subject area (or start by simply browsing & exploring):
http://hlwiki.slais.ubc.ca/index.php/LIBR2195:_Special_Topics,_Busines s_Libraries_Section_2015
2. Determine industry classification code (either SIC or NAICS) of industry in Canada or US:
Industries are classified according to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) which replaces the Standard Industry Classification system (SIC).
Why is the NAICS important? With a NAICS code you can identify an industry “area” and
competitors, major companies and trends. Many business databases will be organized using the NAICS codes.
If you know a NAICS code, you can find all kinds of relevant information in business.
3. Find competitor information for an industry
Once you have broad NAICS classification, find competitors in that industry
4. Find industry/company financial data for a specific company or business
Try Mergent OR Hoover’s http://twist.langara.bc.ca/record=b1185072~S1
5. Find information for marketing planning & strategy:
Some of the aspects that business people want to examine are: products, prices, places and promotion, competitors, customer demographics and market intelligence
6. Find news and other current information, reports and business news:
Current news is important because companies, industries and people change overnight…
BUSINESS PORTALS & PATHFINDERS
Business subject guides are a good way to start research. At Langara Library, BROWSE subject guides by course http://www.langara.bc.ca/library/research-help/assignment-help/index.html
EXPLORE subject guides at the Vancouver Public Library, Business & Economic Collection SFU Library http://www.lib.sfu.ca/help/subject-guides/business/home UBCs David Lam Library has some useful lists http://lam.library.ubc.ca/databases-by-subject/
BC Government Website "Business Management"
Government of Canada. Industry Canada main page Langara Library (Business materials) Vivian Feng, Business Librarian, Langara College Vancouver Public Library (VPL)'s Infoaction & VPL Business Guides & VPL Business Databases
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 3
WHERE DO YOU START TO FIND BUSINESS SOURCES? (Part II)
SEARCH THE LANGARA LIBRARY CATALOGUE (Book, journals, databases):
Langara’s library catalogue provides a great starting point to find business materials o http://www.langara.bc.ca/library/
Use Quick Topic search OR more advanced search interface http://twist.langara.bc.ca/search~S1 Be specific if possible. Most students search by keywords and find too many things (like Google) Use keywords for a business topic, type them in one or two at a time Once you find a good or relevant book, look at the subject headings field (for index terms) SEARCH AGAIN for new words, phrases and subjects suggested in the record Will you use truncation?
o USE truncation signs to find different versions of a word, e.g., medic* will find medical or medicines or medicinal or medication, etc.
o USE quotes to SEARCH "health management"|"business in canada"|"business law"
Finding business materials in the Langara Library Catalogue
Business materials in libraries come in many different formats. How do we find these sources of information in business?
USE the library catalogue to identify subject headings:
Examples of subject headings assigned for business materials:
o Corporations - United States - Directories
o Corporations - Canada o Manufactures British Columbia Directories
What are some other possible subject headings in the Langara Library Catalogue?
WRITE THEM DOWN BELOW WITH YOUR PARTNER: o _______________________________________________________________ o _______________________________________________________________ o _______________________________________________________________ o _______________________________________________________________
FOR DATABASES, ARTICLES & NEWS IN BUSINESS:
Go to: http://www.langara.bc.ca/library/articles-in-journals/articles-atoz.html
Find a business database in the A-Z list, and list three (3) that look like they might be useful
o _______________________________________________________________ o _______________________________________________________________ o _______________________________________________________________ o _______________________________________________________________
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 4
Sample business questions by type:
Information about a business person: “I understand Jimmy Pattison is working with TransLink on the plebiscite for transit in the greater Vancouver area. I would like to find articles about him that give background information and summarize his career.”
Information about a business or company: I am looking for some current information on Apple. Their stock is high at the moment. I’m interested in how well their products are doing such as the iphone6 & Apple Watch.
Information about a business topic: “I am writing an essay on the recent 'sub-prime mortgages'. I am interest why this happened in the United States and why not in Canada?”
Information about a business trend: “I am thinking of investing in real estate in Vancouver. Should I wait or jump into the market? Are there any articles about the long term outlook? Any analysis would be helpful.”
Article indexes and databases in business
Access to periodical and journal literature is important in business. Trade magazines track trends, and keep people informed in business. General magazines are valuable due to what they cover that is not found elsewhere.
Canadian business magazines are among the best sources of analyses of economic forecasts and business practices as well as personal and company profiles. Canada is well served by local, regional and national business newspapers and financial/investment newsletters that track industry performance. Our local and national newspapers (e.g., Globe & Mail, National Post, etc.) have a significant business focus, and are excellent sources of information.
For articles on business in magazines, journals, trade publications and newspapers, with a Canadian focus, the 2 most comprehensive and frequently used sources would be:
Canadian Business & Current Affairs (CBCA)
Canadian Newsstand
Some other examples:
Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) & Business Source Premier (EBSCO) JSTOR, Hoover’s and Mergent Online
There are a number of other indexes/databases but the ones above are core to Canadian “business” librar ies!
Business magazines and newspapers:
In Vancouver, local universities and public libraries have large collections of business magazines, newspapers and journals. The Langara Library has a good collection of business magazines, and some are online (for free).
Business in Vancouver http://www.biv.com/ Financial Post http://www.financialpost.com/index.html
Forbes http://www.forbes.com/
Fortune http://www.fortune.com/ Report on Business http://www.theglobeandmail.com/
Wall Street Journal http://public.wsj.com/home.html
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 5
What to look for in a business database?
EXPLORE indexes/databases in business at Langara library. Each is unique. Can you get a sense of the scope of each? How they overlap and compare? Which would you search? searching by company name? industry?
1. Full product name, and versions (e.g., EBSCO’s Academic Search Premier) http://twist.langara.bc.ca/record=b1184779~S1
2. Related products i.e, Canadian Newstand and CBCA Reference & Current Events 3. Where and how can you access product? 4. Publisher and product information web site 5. Scope/content:
Subjects covered or scope
Formats covered
Product information Company information
Canadian content
Date coverage
6. Full-text availability 7. Search features/access points 8. Overlap with other tools 9. Special features
CBCA REFERENCE & CURRENT EVENTS
Full Product Name: CBCA Reference & Current Events
Names of Related Products: o CBCA Complete, CBCA Reference, CBCA Education, CBCA Current Affairs.
Print: Canadian Business Index, Canadian News Index, Canadian Magazine Index = Canadian Index.
Access: Subscription database available through Langara, Vancouver Public Library. Requires library card.
Publisher and website: o ProQuest o Scope/content : provides an in-depth Canadian focus by indexing hundreds of business periodicals, in
addition to daily newspapers such as the National Post and Globe and Mail. Includes trade, topical, and academic journals, as well as business and professional publications.
Subjects covered: acquisitions, mergers, bankruptcies, forecasts and trends, business personalities, company activities, government activities, industry news, technological change as well as current events, education, arts, law, science and medicine.
Materials & formats covered: Journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters.
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 6
Annual reports and filings
Numerous business directories, databases, and websites provide company profiles and financial information. The y provide access to company annual reports, with some of the most important listed below. Some libraries, like VPL Business maintain paper collections for key companies. However, most company research is done online.
Business sites (usually dot.com) provide summaries of financials, and links to financial documents o e.g., Hoovers Company Profiles http://twist.langara.bc.ca/record=b1015801~S1 o Subscription databases such as Mergent Online.
Subscription products and databases for Canadian public companies o One of the best known FPAdvisor (provided by Infomart). o VPL has a subscription
Securities regulatory bodies in each country. o SEDAR (Canada) offers financial information and annual reports.
What is an annual report?
By annual report we are referring to a financial report that documents a company’s finances for shareholders. Annual reports are good sources of information about a company's business history and current performance .
SFU Library has an excellent business subject guide specifically dealing with company annual reports. Finding company annual reports http://www.lib.sfu.ca/help/subject-guides/business/annual-reports
How to read an annual report”? On web sites there is material to assist shareholders, how to read an annual report and other financial documents. http://www.ibm.com/investor/tools/annualreports.phtml
Annual Report Gallery for U.S. public companies and links to annual reports for companies. http://www.annualreports.com
EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval System).
Similar to SEDAR. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) database of company filings. http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml
IRIN: Annual Report Resource Centre http://www.irin.com/ SEDAR (System for Electronic Documentation Analysis and Retrieval) http://www.sedar.com/ e-filing system by
Canadian Securities Administrators for disclosure of publicly-run companies and mutual funds, stocks.
A selection of annual reports
This list of annual reports is intended as a set of examples (Canadian and American) to get a better idea of the nature of annual reports. Use databases and search engines to look for a specific organization's report.
Air Canada via ACE Aviation
Bank of Canada Canada Post Corp
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
Canadian Tire Corporate Information Microsoft (Bill Gates company)
Rogers Inc.
Starbucks Coffee Company in the US
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 7
Financial reporting concepts and terms
There is an assumption made when working with this material that the end user has some understanding of important concepts related to the financial reporting obligations of so called “public companies” or “publicly traded companies”. To provide some background you need to consider the following questions:
What is a public company? What kind of financial reporting is required for a public company?
What are the financial reporting requirements for private companies?
What kind of financial information can I find for private companies? Do the financial reporting requirements differ in Canada and the US?
What is the role of EDGAR and SEDAR in the US and Canada?
What is an annual report? What is a 10-K?
Business and company directories/databases
In Canadian libraries, some of the traditional publishers that create sources of information are:
Dun & Bradstreet
Dun & Bradstreet of Canada
Financial Post Fraser’s
Kompass
Micromedia/ProQuest Moody’s & Scott’s
Standard & Poor’s
Check the Langara Library catalogue for these directories: http://twist.langara.bc.ca/search~S1
Current company directories/databases
The Library at Queen’s University publishes an extensive and well organized listing of business resources http://library.queensu.ca/research/guide/business
Blue Book of Canadian Business
Hoover’s Online http://www.hoovers.com/ Infomart Financial Post http://www.fpinfomart.ca/
Mergent Online http://twist.langara.bc.ca/record=b1185072~S1
Scott’s Canadian Business Directory and Database http://www.scottsinfo.com/
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 8
TOP COMPANY RANKINGS
One way of presenting company information is looking at how private and public companies rank . This is useful for investors, job seekers, financial planners, etc. Rankings are regularly published by Forbes and Fortune magazines.
B.C. Business Magazine’s Top 100 http://www.bcbusinessmagazine.com/ o Rankings of the B.C. Business Magazine for the top BC companies
Forbes Magazine Online http://www.forbes.com/ o Stock market, financial information, domestic, global, private, public companies. Forbes 500. Rankings.
Fortune Magazine Online http://www.fortune.com/ provides stock market and business information for all companies on Fortune 500. Also articles related to companies.
GlobeInvestor http://www.globeinvestor.com/ o Report on Business of the Globe & Mail’s profiles and rankings for 1000 publicly-traded companies in
Canada.
Product/Trade Directories
A special kind of company directory or database is referred to as a “trade directory”. Its purpose is to provide an index to products and services offered for sale. For example, can you find companies in Canada that manufacture tires? Some classic sources for products and services that have been at the core of most Canadian business collections are:
Blue Book of Canadian Business http://twist.langara.bc.ca/record=b1000633~S1 Canadian Key Business Directory http://twist.langara.bc.ca/record=b1055971~S1
Fraser’s Canadian Trade Directory
Scott’s Directories
Thomas Register
Check the Langara Library catalogue for these directories: http://twist.langara.bc.ca/search~S1
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 9
Government Publications
Each year, governments (federal, provincial and local) produce information. Governments are producers of information in every subject area and on every topic. Much is vitally important to business. Government publications include sources of information such as:
Annual reports of departments and agencies Financial statements and other reporting documents
Research and technical reports
Publications and information for consumers and the general public Serial publications of all kinds that track the performance and productivity of
government, the economy and industry, and measure the health of the nation
Statistical information of all kinds; databases and data sets.
Handbooks, manuals, directories and standards for many industries and endeavours. Legislative publications tracking the business of government.
Laws, statutes and regulations (to be covered in great deal in the next module)
Maps and resource surveys. Guides and directories to programs, services and contacts
Almanacs and yearbooks
Almanacs, yearbooks, directories and other sources draw on government information. These tools are
important for smaller libraries that may not have some of the sources available by subscription. Some
key sources, covering government information, are listed below.
Canada Year Book Statistics Canada Canadian Almanac & Directory Database for government information, associations, magazines,
newspapers, museums, school boards, colleges, universities, hospitals BC Encyclopedia. Print and online. Photographs. BC persons, places and things. Good for
background and history of government institutions and profiles of politicians. Scott’s Canadian Sourcebook is a directory of information related to Canadian organizations,
business and government Scott’s Government Index is a directory of the federal and provincial governments. Contact
information. http://www.scottsinfo.com
Check the Langara Library catalogue for these almanacs: http://twist.langara.bc.ca/search~S1
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 10
BC Government Information
A lot of valuable information is now published on government web sites. Take time to explore the main site of the B.C. government http://www2.gov.bc.ca/
BC Government Directory https://dir.gov.bc.ca/
BC Government Publications Index https://www.crownpub.bc.ca/
BC Legislative Assembly https://www.leg.bc.ca/
A central site for most legislative information including debates, bills, votes, statutes, etc.
BC Stats http://www.bcstats.gov.bc.ca
BC Stats Depository Program makes resources available in select deposit libraries.
Current Statistics
Business Indicators
Consumer Price Index Exports (BC origin)
Tourism Room Revenue
Earnings and employment Trends Labour Force Statistics
Immigration Highlights
Migration Highlights Small Business Quarterly
Canadian Government Information http://www.canada.ca/
Bank of Canada http://www.bankofcanada.ca/ Business Development Bank of Canada http://wwwbdc.ca/en/home.htm
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/
Canada Revenue Agency http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/ Department of Finance Canada http://www.fin.gc.ca/
Employment and Social Development Canada http://www.esdc.gc.ca/eng/home.shtml
Industry Canada Canada’s business site; information on industries & companies.
Parliament of Canada http://www.parl.gc.ca/ Statistics Canada http://www.statcan.ca
CANSIM (CANadian Socioeconomic Information Management Databases) is a comprehensive database from Statistics Canada. http://www5.statcan.gc.ca/cansim/home-accueil?lang=eng
See CANSIM Business, consumer and property services | Business performance and ownership
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 11
United States sources of information
Business.gov http://www.business.gov/
Fedstats http://fedstats.sites.usa.gov/
GPO (Government Printing Office – keeping America informed) http://www.gpo.gov/
NTIS (National Technical Information Service) http://www.ntis.gov/
PAIS International http://www.proquest.com/products-services/pais-set-c.html
o Index to literature related to public policy, social policy and social sciences.
Data and Statistics USA http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Reference-Shelf/Data.shtml
US Bureau of the Census http://www.census.gov publishes the Statistical Abstract of the United States. Annual. A concise source of US demographic, social and economic information
U.S. Department of Commerce http://www.commerce.gov/
US Federal Reserve http://www.federalreserve.gov/ Sets monetary policy, similar to Bank of Canada
International sources A list of key international governmental bodies and publications with business information:
Europa World Year Book http://www.europaworld.com/pub/
ILO (International Labour Organization) http://www.ilo.org/public/english/sitemap.htm UNESCO http://en.unesco.org/
UNICEF Statistics http://data.unicef.org/
United Nations. Statistical Division http://unstats.un.org/unsd/default.htm WHO (World Health Organization) http://www.who.int/
World Almanac and Book of Facts http://www.worldalmanac.com/
World Bank http://www.worldbank.org/ World Factbook CIA https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 12
TO FIND INFORMATION ABOUT INDUSTRIES IN CANADA & THE US
FIND NAICS or SIC code, generate a list of competitors within an industry
USE MERGENT ONLINE OR HOOVER http://www.langara.bc.ca/library/articles-in-journals/articles-atoz.html
Step 1: Use Hoover’s Online to locate industry classification codes
FIND Industry codes for home health care services
What is the industry code for this industry?
Step 2: Use the NAICS code to identify companies, competitors and key financials
TIPS FOR SEARCHING BUSINESS SOURCES
o Most sources offer basic and advanced searching with options to narrow searches o Use advanced search screens, and remember to use specific search terms o Read any of the search tips in the database
o Most people use the keyword search function which can be a problem o Brainstorm as many keywords as possible for the topic and begin searching o Some search criteria are full text, citation and abstract, subject, company, or title o Look at the subjects field. Search for combinations of words and phrases suggested
o An asterisk is a common truncation symbol. Use it to find different versions of a word. o Words within quotes help you find phrases - e.g., "market* plan*" will search for the two
words as a phrase and also find versions such as marketing plans or market planning o Use a wild card and Boolean (AND, OR, NOT) to limit or expand your search
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 13
TO FIND CURRENT NEWS ABOUT BUSINESSES IN CANADA
Canadian Newstand indexes major newspapers in Canada, includes Globe and Mail
CBCA Reference & Current Events is a database providing access to a range of excellent Canadian business journals & magazines http://www.langara.bc.ca/library/articles-in-journals/index.html
LIBR2195 Business Weeks Handout
Linda Morrison & Dean Giustini | Instructors, LIBR2195 Special Topics, Langara College 14
Glossary (USE FOR THE QUIZ WORTH 5%)
Annual reports are good sources of information about a company's business history and current performance .
Business library is a library dedicated to providing library and information services to the business community, wherever required, including via online resources. Some examples of libraries dedicated to business topics include the David Lam Library at UBC and the VPL Business Division.
Business information sources refer to sources of information in business and commerce that provide addresses, definitions, articles, overviews of companies, industries, government agencies. Formats include electronic and print documents, indexes, databases, and other files of information.
Company information refers to any information that explains a company such as its annual report, financial report, list of executives and employees, and so on.
Depository library in Canada refers to a library responsible for providing access to government publications in all formats, and typically belongs to a network of depository libraries. See Canada’s Depository Services Program http://www.publications.gc.ca/site/eng/programs/aboutDsp.html
Government publications are defined as printed documents, books, periodicals, magazines, pamphlets or maps
originating with the imprint of an office of a legally organized government at the municipal, provincial or national level.
There are also international government publications.
Government depository program See Canada’s Depository Services Program http://www.publications.gc.ca/site/eng/programs/aboutDsp.html
Industry Canada http://www.ic.gc.ca/
Industry information refers to any information that provides background information about specific industries such as the medical devices industry, clothing industry or food industry. Sources of information that provide industry information often use the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) or NAICS code.
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) or NAICS code was adopted in 1997 by Canada, Mexico and the United States AND designed to provide definitions of industries and facilitate analysis of three different economies. For more information, see Industry Canada http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cis-sic.nsf/eng/h_00004.html
Public companies are publicly-traded and held companies, sometimes called corporations whose ownership is shared among shareholders of stock which are freely traded on a stock exchange. In Canada, we have the Toronto Stock Exchange and several other related exchanges http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Stock_exchanges_in_Canada
Private companies are privately-owned (or held) companies and corporations that are owned either by non-governmental organizations or by a small number of company members. Private companies do not offer or trade its company stock (shares) to the general public on stock markets owned and traded privately.