Competitive Intelligence

Basic Guides to Business Information Resources

All of these sources are an excellent way to begin navigating your way through the maze of information resources at the library. Search our catalog OSCAR to see if we have resources listed in these guides.

  • New Competitor Intelligence, Ref HD38.7 .F863 1995
  • Business Information: How to Find It, How to Use It Ref Desk HF5356 .L36 1992
  • International Business Information Ref Desk HF54.5 .P33 1998
  • Business Information Sources, Ref Desk Z7164 .C81 D16 1993
  • Business A to Z Source Finder, Ref Z7164 .C81 V355 1996
  • Encyclopedia of Business Information Sources, Ref HF5353 .E9
  • The Prentice Hall Directory of Online Business Information, Ref HF54.56 .P74 1998
  • Online Competitive Intelligence, Ref HD38.7 .B867 1999

Choosing a Company

Keep the following questions in mind:

  • Is your company public or private?
  • Is your company a division or subsidiary of a U.S. or foreign company?

Annual and 10K reports which give financial information on a company are only filed by publicly traded companies. Private, closely-held companies or partnerships do not need to file, and therefore they do not. Unless you have access to these types of companies through a friend or colleague, financials are not readily available. To find financial statements for U.S. public companies use:

Exploring Your Company

  • Find a history and overview of your company:

    • International Directory of Company Histories, Ref HD2721 .I58
    • Hoover's Online
    • Notable Corporate Chronologies, Ref HG4009 .N68
  • Corporate Structure
    Is your company public, a parent, a subsidiary, or a division of another company?
    • Standard & Poor's Register of Corporations, Ref HG4057 .A4
    • Brands and Their Companies, Ref T223 .V4 A25
    • Directory of Corporate Affiliations , Ref HG4057 .A2899
  • Uncovering Your Competitors
    There are several places to find major players in your industry:
    • S&P Industry Surveys (public companies only), Ref HG4501 .S74 (Ref Desk)
    • Mergent's Industry Review (public only), Ref HG4961 .M68
    • Value Line Investment Survey (public only), Ref HG4501 .V263 (Ref Desk)
    • Red Chip Review (small-cap stocks) Ref HG4915 .R31 (Ref Desk)
    • Manufacturing USA (public & private), Ref HD9743 .M36
    • Service Industries USA (public & private), Ref HD9980.1 .S479
    • Finance, Insurance, & Real Estate USA (public & private), Ref HG1 .F3
    • Transportation and Public Utilities USA , Ref HE 230 .T734
    • California Manufacturers Register, Ref T12 .D48
    • Dun's Business Rankings (public & private), Ref HG4057 .A237
    • Business Rankings Annual (public & private), Ref HG4050 .B88
    • Santa Clara County Commerce & Industry Directory, Ref HF5068 .S16 S388
    • Book of Lists, Ref HF5068 .S16 B6
    • Market Share Reporter (public & private), Ref HF5415.2 .M27
  • Electronic Resources For Finding Structure and Competitors

(NOTE: Do not forget to search OSCAR and other databases for books and articles)

Exploring Your Industry

  • Find an overview of your industry and its SIC (or NAICS) code:
    • North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), Ref HF 1042 .A55 N67 1997
    • 1997 NAICS and 1987 SIC Correspondence Tables
    • Encyclopedia of American Industries, Ref HC102 .E53
    • Standard & Poor's Industry Surveys, Ref HG4961 .M68 at Ref. Desk
    • Moody's Industry Review, Ref HG4961 .M68
    • Moody's Industrial Manual, Ref HG4961 .M67
    • Moody's International Manual, Ref HG 4009 .M66
    • Moody's OTC Industrial Manual, Ref HG4961 .M7237
    • Manufacturing USA, Ref HD9743 .M36
    • Service Industries USA, Ref HD9980.1 .S479
    • Finance, Insurance, & Real Estate USA, Ref HG1 .F3
    • WEFA Industrial Monitor Ref HC 101 .W434
    • Statistical Reference Index (SRI) Index Shelf - A Back
    • Wholesale and Retail Trade USA, Ref HF5421 .W58
    • Plunkett's Retail Industry Almanac, Ref HF5429 .P57
    • Plunkett's Infotech Industry Almanac, Ref HD 9696 .C63 U5287
    • Market Share Reporter, Ref HF5415.2 .M27
    • Industrial Forecast, 1998-2000, Ref HC106.82 .I53
    • U.S. Industry & Trade Outlook '98, Ref HC106.82 .U16
    • Statistical Abstract of the United States, Ref Desk HA202 .U5
    • Infrastructure Industries USA, Ref HD9506.U5 I53
    • Information, Finance & Services USA, Ref HD9981.4 I53
  • Electronic resources for industry overviews:
    See also the Market Research Guide
    • LexisNexis Statistical
      Indexes historical and current statistics produced by U.S. Government with some full-text
    • Hoover's Online
    • Info Tech Trends
       Provides market information on computers, peripherals,software, storage, Internet, and communications equipment. Details include sales and shipment forecasts, market share, installed base, and planned purchases.
    • Investext Plus
      Company and Industry analyst's reports.
    • Industry Specific Research
      Has links to Industry-Specific Internet Resources
    • CEOExpress Industry Pages
      Provides information on industries such as Automotive, Chemicals, Commercial Real Estate, Energy & Utilities, Finance, Human, resources, Insurance, MBA, Non-profit and Telecommunications.
    • Industry Research Desk
      Proclaimed as an Industry Portal, has links to various industries.
  • Industry ratios:
    • Industry Norms and Key Business Ratios
    • Almanac of Business and Industrial Financial Ratios. (Troy's), Ref HF5681 .R25 A45
    • Annual Statement Studies (Robert Morris Associates), Ref HF5681 .B2
    • Analyst's Handbook (Standard & Poor's), Ref HG4905 .A66
    • S & P Statistical Service, Ref HG4915 .S68
  • Electronic resources for company and industry ratios:

A Checklist of Electronic Resources

  • Stalking the Business Press
    Trade journals, newspapers, corporate press releases, and Wall Street analyst's reports are the primary sources of publicly available information on the business environment.

  • Search these indexes for news and analysts' reports on your company and industry:

    • LexisNexis Academic
      Fulltext database of thousands of magazine and newspaper articles, news wires, legal and government sources. Dates of coverage and updates vary from title to title. Select Business News.

    • Business Reference Suite
      It includes three databases. Business & Industry: Access to articles appearing in the business and trade press around the world dealing with companies, industries, markets and products. 70% of the articles are full text. Business & Management Practices: Covers articles from business and management publications that deal with management issues or business methodology from a practical approach. Fulltext of over 60% of the articles. TableBase: tabular and statistical information from statistical annuals, trade association reports, industry reports, government agencies, international organizations, newsletters and journals.

    • Business Newsbank Plus (1993-present online, 1985-1994 on CD-ROM Network)
      Information from over 500 local, regional, national and international newspapers, newswires and business journals covering companies, industries, executives and products, including current information. It is an excellent source for information on smaller companies

    • Factiva
      Access to over 6,000 full-text business publications including newspapers, newswires, journals, magazines, and trade publications.

    • InfoTechTrends
      Forecasts, market share, sales, consumer usage on computers, related equipment, and software.

    • Investext Plus
      Full-text company, industry, and market research reports prepared by leading analysts and economists from regional, national, and international securities and investment firms. Updated monthly. Current 3 years.

  • Financial Information

    • Thomson Research
      Financial information on thousands of U.S. and international public companies. Company information includes extensive online financial filings, annual reports, price and earnings data, quarterly and annual financial figures, company profiles, and spreadsheet financials.

    • Factiva
      Company & Industry Center: includes brief financial snapshots, lengthier financial profiles, company/industry comparison reports, and SEC full-text filings.

    • Hoover's Online
      Profiles of more than 14,000 companies, including financial information.