1. WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN YOU RESEARCH A COMPANY

1. Information about the company:

• Type of products or services it provides

• Size of company, growth within past 5 years, potential for growth, short term profit

• Other competition within the field

• Organization structure, corporate relationship, private or public owned, present stock price

• Geographical location, location of home office, number of sites, relocation policy

• Future plans for new products, services, etc.

• Company philosophy, personnel policies, etc.

• Opportunities for professional development, training, etc.

2. Information about the position you're seeking:

• Job description

• Typical career path in your field

• Names of persons in your area within the company

• Name of manager or immediate supervisor in your area of interest

2. WHERE TO FIND INFORMATION

1. The Internet!

Find out the company's web address by telephoning the office or performing a search on one of the many search mechanisms:

www.yahoo.com
www.go.com
www.excite.com
www.webcrawler.com

Most companies list general information about their products/services, in addition to information about various career opportunities.

2. Basic information about U.S. Corporations:

Multi-industry national business directories
     The following directories contain lists of thousands of corporations by company name, geographic location, industry codes, rankings and more!

• Million Dollar Directory (Dunn and Bradstreet)

• Standard & Poor's Register

• Thomas Register of Manufacturers

• Ward's Largest U.S. Corporations

Single industry national business of directories

• Check the availability of particular industry at Main Campus Library Reference Desk.

State Industrial Directories

• Provides information about company products, industry codes, officers, and employees.

City Directories

• Directories by local Chamber of Commerce and telephone directories.

3. Description of business and financial information:

• 10-K Reports - official business and financial report of company filed yearly with the SEC

• Moody's Manual

• Annual Reports - Information on financial status, products and services, philosophy of company, future plans and projections.  Additional information about employees and company image can be obtained from reports and pictures.

• Value Line Investment Survey

• Articles from periodicals, professional journals, and trade publications.

4. Other information

• Brand names and the producing company - Trade Names Dictionary and the Thomas Register.

• Detailed profiles on top officers of larger corporations - Dunn & Bradstreet's Reference Book of Corporate Management, Standard & Poor's Register of Corporations, Who's Who in Finance and Industry.

• Listings and basic information on American companies with overseas operations - Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries, International Directory of Corporate Affiliations, Business International Index.

3. SOURCES OF INFORMATION

1. Career Resources @ CDC

• Annual reports and binders with company information

• Greater Cincinnati Business & Industry Directory

2. Main Campus Library

• Inquire at Reference Desk for location of resources in Section II.

• Several reference guides compiled by UC library bibliographers have extensive research information - especially useful is "How to Find Information About Companies"

3. Public Libraries

4. Contact the company and inquire about availability of annual reports to general public.

This page last updated on October 13, 2003
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