General Business Reference Sources

Section 2

 
General Business Reference Sources -joke

In this Section:

Chapter 2: Hoover´s Handbook

The Hoover’s Handbooks cited above provide profiles on specific companies, both domestic and international, in terms of size, growth, visibility, and so on. The good news is the detailed profiles of 1,500 companies (all large); the bad news is that there are approximately 20 million of them (almost all small), not including farms. The top 500 companies represent about 55 percent of the U.S. gross national product.
One primary reason the Hoover’s Handbooks are offered at the beginning of this book is the service that its publisher, Hoover’s Inc., provides. Hoover’s, Inc. is a leading provider of business information to the mass market. Its Hoover’s Company Database, for example, is the only "reasonably priced source" (according to its editors) for information on the operations, strategies, histories, financial performance, and products of major U.S. and global public and private companies.
The format is simple, well organized, and easy to read. A list of the databases produced by Hoover’s includes:

Chapter 3: Standard & Poor´s

The most encyclopedic source of narrative and financial industry analysis is Standard and Poor’s Corp. (S&P). It offers such a wide variety of publications (approximately) that could be useful to anyone engaged in business research that it is impossible to all of them in one chapter. So we won’t. Nevertheless, it is important to a few of the S&P publications to get a feel for their topics and format and to names of various other works (see below) to give readers an idea of what is. Business Research Sources focuses on publications with a broad scope; some S&P references are not included due to their and specific nature. Once again you are advised to take advantage of Michael ’s Business Information to get a more detailed explanation of how toS&P publications.
This chapter covers Standard & Poor’s Industry Surveys and Standard & Poor’s Corporation Records. The following publications are available in many libraries in either hard cover, on-line, or CD-ROM versions.

Chapter 4: RMA Risk Management Association (formerly named Robert Morris Associates): Annual Statement Studies

This book is filled with financial statistics. If you don't like a lot of numbers, find someone who does and get that person to explain them to you because it's important and because it isn't that hard. The numbers are given in percentages of assets and sales. This book is about small business financial statements: balance sheets, income statements, and financial ratios. It is an excellent business resource.
RMA Risk Management Association (formerly named Robert Morris Associates) is the national association of bank loan and credit officers. Founded in 1914, RMA has grown (as of publication date) to nearly 3,000 commercial banks and thrift institutions, which account for almost 80 percent of the consumer and industrial lending done by these types of U.S. financial institutions. RMA members are represented in the association by nearly 15,000 commercial loan and credit officers and related personnel in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Canada, and offshore cities.

Chapter 5: FASB Accounting Standards

According to most accounting experts (e.g., Robert May, et al. Accounting), financial statements that a U.S. business publishes and distributes to outsiders must conform to professional standards called Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). Before the mid-1930s, GAAP consisted of a relatively few foundation elements that had evolved over several centuries. Considerable judgment was required to apply GAAP to individual businesses and circumstances. In fact, managers of U.S. firms made most judgments regarding what constituted GAAP and how financial statements were to conform. After the stock market crash of 1929 and the ensuing Great Depression, however, many abuses of the system were discovered. Although the crash and depression were not caused by accounting abuses, such abuses apparently were considered contributing factors. In the mid-1930s, the U.S. government passed the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. Both acts gave the newly formed Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) the authority to set accounting standards for financial statements filed with the SEC, affecting virtually all publicly owned U.S. corporations. The SEC turned to the accounting profession, represented by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). The AICPA's Committee on Accounting Procedure (CAP) and later its Accounting Principles Board (APB) set standards for financial statements until 1973. In 1973, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), a new body independent of the AICPA, was formed to bring representatives of businesses and users of financial statements, as well as CPAs, directly into the standard-setting process.

Chapter 6: The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) may be the most renowned business newspaper in the world; it certainly is in the United States, the largest economy in the world. Regional editions are also published. The Wall Street Journal Europe is edited and published in Brussels and printed in Germany, Great Britain, Switzerland, and Belgium.
The WSJ is one of the most frequently consulted financial dailies in the United States. Any casual reader will enjoy going to the center column on the first page for some trivia or plain old fun, such as, "Quizz: How do U Spel Milenium? Not That Way, Actually" (June 25, 1997). The WSJ provides much more than just securities quotations; nevertheless, the detailed financial tables are one main reason for its popularity. The data are provided by a variety of sources. Stock quotes appear daily for the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange, and other domestic and foreign exchanges. The WSJ has a large "Directory of Services," which will help the reader find information provided by Dow Jones & Co. For example:

Chapter 7: Occupational Outlook Handbook

The Occupational Outlook Handbook, the government's premier publication on career guidance, provides essential information about prospective changes in the world of work and the qualifications that will be needed in the future work environment. The Handbook describes about 250 occupations in detail, covering about 104 million jobs, or 85 percent of all jobs in the nation.
The Handbook is best used as a reference; it is not meant to be read from cover to cover, which you probably hadn't considered anyway since it is 496 fairly large pages with very small print, no color, and only a few photos. Start by exploring the table of contents, where related occupations are grouped in clusters, or look in the alphabetical index at the end of the book for specific occupations that interest you. The introductory chapter explains how the occupational descriptions, or statements, are organized. The next two chapters, "Sources of Information on Career Preparation and Training" and "Tomorrow's Jobs," tell you where to obtain additional information and discuss the forces that are likely to determine employment opportunities in industries and occupations through the year 2005.
For any occupation that sounds interesting to you, use the Handbook to find out what the work entails; what education and training you need; what the advancement possibilities, earnings, and job outlook are; and what related occupations you might consider. Each occupational statement in the Handbook follows a standard format, making it easier for you to compare occupations:

Chapter 8: Harvard Business Review

Despite its academic roots, Harvard Business Review (HBR) has matured into an excellent market magazine (i.e., it has colorful articles in both senses of the word, editorials, advertisements, book reviews, etc.). It is very useful for perusing erudite topics and issues of recent interest in the business environment. Its layout, language, and format are done in a user-friendly and pleasing manner.
If the $13.50 per copy (as of this date) at the newsstand puts you off, you should know that it costs just about double overseas, where you obviously get some very serious readers. The bottom line, of course, is whether you should spend the money in any case (you get two months' worth...since it comes out once every two months). You can find HBR in practically every library in the developed world-the rest is up to you.
Today HBR has a very nice layout compared to the old stodgy times. One particularly useful attribute is the comprehensive table of contents. Each article, department, and special piece in the magazine is annotated to brief the reader on what may be interesting and what is not. Besides the articles, there are four "departments": (1) "HBR Case Study," which creates a fictitious company and its problems, and then solicits some reactions by experts offering solutions; (2) "Thinking About..." identifies a business issue and analyzes it; (3) "Ideas at Work," discusses the practical applications of concepts (e.g., getting the most out of your product development process); and (4) "Books in Review," which reviews a couple of recent books relating to business or economics. One unique section, not listed as one of the departments, is called "Executive Summaries" and provides a brief overview of each article in that particular issue of HBR, as well as information on ordering reprints and what to expect in the next issue. There are also special topics, for example, information on the McKinsey awards or something called, "Strategic Humor." Throw in the letters to the editor and you have it!

Chapter 9: Who´s Who in America

Who´s WhoOnly a few reference sources specifically cover prominent business leaders. Three national directories specialize in executive profiles: (1) the Reference Book of Corporate Managements will be covered briefly below; (2) Who's Who in Finance and Industry is presented in this chapter as a recommended supplement; and (3) Volume 2 of the S&P Register (see Chapter 3 for more information on Standard & Poor's publications).
Nevertheless, Who's Who in America does a good job of covering everybody, including executives, which is perhaps best for the researcher's needs and so will be the primary focus here.

Chapter 10: MIT´s Technology Review

OK, OK, so Technology Review is from MIT, a prestigious engineering school, and it is a magazine about technology, but that's no reason to run scared . . . right? Right! This is an eminently reader-friendly publication (80 pages). It is not a periodical about engineering, math, or the so-called hard sciences, and it certainly is easier to read than your average organic chemistry book. Yet it is about technology, in all its forms. For example, from "Mindful Healing: A Talk with Herbert Benson" (October 1996):

The author of The Relaxation Response describes his quest to understand the mind/body link-activated by meditation, belief in a particular medical procedure, or even religious faith-in reducing stress and promoting a patient's recovery. But he decries those who would take his ideas to an unwarranted extreme by proselytizing or blaming patients for their disease.

Chapter 11: Small Business Sourcebook

Small Business Sourcebook (SBS) provides expanded and updated coverage of a wide variety of sources of information and assistance for all entrepreneurs. Volume 1 includes profiles of 225 generic small businesses (e.g., antique shop, apparel shop, appliance store, art gallery, etc.). Volume 2 covers general small business topics; programs and assistance in U.S. states and territories and many Canadian provinces; and U.S. federal government agencies and offices. This book-1,550 pages in Volume 1 alone-is comprehensive and informative. The two together deserve to be perhaps the best source book for small business.

The Small Business Sourcebook groups information in four sections:

Chapter 12: Peterson´s Guide to Four-Year Colleges

For over 30 years, according to its editors, Peterson's has given students and parents the most comprehensive, up-to-date information on undergraduate institutions in the United States and Canada. The data published in Peterson's Guide to Four-Year Colleges are obtained directly from the colleges and updated every year. However, if you are ambivalent or your parents are not too enthusiastic about the four years of expense and turmoil in sending you to college, the Marine Corps recruiting number is: (1-800-MAR-INES).

The book contains:

Chapter 13: American Heritage

As Ralph Waldo Emerson put it, "The years teach much which the days never know."Feeling the need for a business historical perspective in this textbook, I wanted to include a magazine called Audacity, but it has, unfortunately, been discontinued. The mission of Audacity was to make connections between yesterday and today, and thereby help business and government leaders move more confidently and knowledgeably into tomorrow.

Chapter 14: The Worldly Philosophers

My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is up to 99 cents a can. That's about $7.00 in dog money.
Joe Weinstein

Robert L. Heilbroner, the author of The Worldly Philosophers, is a wonderful writer, and he would enjoy Weinstein's comments about economics. This book is one of Heilbroner's classics, appearing now in its sixth edition. Adam Smith was no slouch in his day either when he wrote The Wealth of Nations (see "Recommended Supplement" below). Although the two books are fundamentally different-Heilbroner's being an overview of the lives of the economists whose ideas set in motion the development of the Western world, and Smith's the voluminous investigation of the nature of what was to become capitalism-they both help to explain the paradigms that created the intellectual foundation of our economy.
Unlike communism and socialism, American capitalism had no ideology specifically adopted by the political process, except that government should stay out of its way. Nevertheless, capitalism is the strongest political-economic force on the planet. The two books in this chapter offer a representative perspective on capitalism and the evolution of economic thinking.

CALVIN AND HOBBES  1998 Watterson Dist. by UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

Optional industry references:




General Business Reference Sources