SCOPE:

Directories are of prime importance in answering a large number of questions relating to business. They provide answers to questions involving the identification of the manufacturers of a particulat product, the addresses and telephone numbers of specific companies, or the names of their key executives. A company's web page can provide you with a wealth of information about that company and its products or services.

In searching for information on a company answers to the following questions will be helpful:

How big is the company?

Many publishers require that a company's assets, sales or number of employees must meet minum standards in order for it to be listed.

Is the company public or private?

Private companies are often not included in business directories; public companies usually are included.

What is the company's principle line of business?

Companies that manufacture or sell products are generally better represented in directories than are those that sell services.

Is the company a subsidiary, a division, or an affiliate of another company?

It may be necessary to consult a directory that lists the companies separately or links them with the appropriate parent company.

Does the company have a web page?

Once source is to check out Yahoo which maintains a list of over 3,000 companies by type, from "advertising" to "weather."

The following is a list of major directories that can be found in the library. This list is by no means comprehensive but will aid in the search ofr business information. Please check the library catalog (OPAC) for additional titles.

BASIC BUSINESS DIRECTORIES

Standard and Poor's Register of Corporations, Directors, and Executives. New York: Standard and Poor's, 1928- 3 volumes, Annual, with supplements.

A three-volume annual, kept up-to-date by three cumulated supplements. Volume l lists, by company name, some 45,000 businesses. The emphasis is primarily on American companies. Volume 2 is a biographical directory and volume 3 is comprised of indexes listing Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes and the companies categorized under each code, a geographical index, lists of new additions to the directory, an obituary section, and a corporate family index that lists parent companies, divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates.

Million Dollar Directory. Parsippany, N.J.: Dun's Marketing Services, 1959-. 5 volumes. Annual.

The first three volumes alphabetically list some 160,000 American companies having an indicated net worth exceeding $500,000. Volumes four and five are geographic and industry indexes. Each compnay listing includes the name, address, and telephone number of the company; the company's state of incorporation; titles and names of key executives; categories of products and services offered; SIC code(s); approximate annual sales; and number of employees.

Standard Directory of Advertisers: Classified Edition. Wilmette, Ill.: National Register Publishing, 1915-. Annual.

Includes companies that allocate at least $75,000 in annual appropriations for either national or regional advertising campaigns. Information that can be found here includes annual advertising appropriations and type(s) of advertising media used, advertising agency representing the company and names of key executives. It also includes a trade name list which lists brand names and the companies that own them.

Thomas Register of American Manfacturers and Thomas Register Catalog File. New York: Thomas Publishing, 1905-. 21 volumes. Annual.

Provides information on American manufacturers, distributors, and suppliers. Arrangement is in three main parts. Volumes 1 through 12 comprise the "Products and Services" section and is grouped by product and then by state and city. Volumes 13 and 14 contain the "Company Profiles" section. It is arranged alphabetically. Volume 14 includes a trademark index. Volumes 15 through 21 features the catalogs of 1,200 different companies.

GUIDES TO DIRECTORIES

These sources will help to identify specialized directories in order to aid in locating information on narrower topics.

Marlow, Cecilia Ann, and Robert C. Thomas, eds. The Directory of Directories. 4th ed. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1987. 2 volumes.

Subtitled "An Annotated Guide to Approximately 9,600 Business and Industrial Directories, Professional and Scientific Rosters, Directory Databases, and Other Lists and Guides of All Kinds,"it groups directories under the broad subject categories such as "General Business Directories" and "Specific Industries and Lines of Business."

Klein, Bernard, ed. Guide to American Directories. Coral Springs, Fla.: B. Klein Publications.

Each entry contains a brief annotation. Arrangement is by subject classification.

GUIDES TO SUBSIDIARIES, DIVISIONS AND AFFILIATES

Directory of Corporate Affiliations. Wilmette, Ill.: National Register Publishing, 1967-. Annual.

The main section is arranged alphabetically by the name of the parent company and includes lists of the company's divisions and/or subsidiaries.

International Directory of Corporate Affiliations Wilmette, Ill.: National Register Publishing, 1981-. Annual.

Lists foreign subsidiaries of U.S. parent companies and American subsidiaries of foreign parent companies.

Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries. New York: World Trade Academy Press. 3 volumes.

Lists standard subsidiary information along with employment information abroad.

GUIDES TO FOREIGN COMPANIES

Angel, Juvenal L. comp. Directory of Foreign Firms Operating in the United States. New York: World Trade Academy Press.

Arpan, Jeffrey S., and David A. Ricks. Directory of Foreign Manufacturers in the United States. Atlanta: College of Business Administration, Georgia State University.

Both of these directories lists addresses and other information for the corporate headquarters of a foreign company with American-based subsidiaries.

LISTS OF LARGEST COMPANIES

Fortune

"Fortune 500" is an annual listing of the top 500 companies in the United States. The lists usually appears in an April or May issue and uses annual sales volume to rank the 500 largest industrial companies. The library holds annual reports on a majority of these industries. A June issue contains the "Service 500," a list of the 500 largest nonindustrial companies and an August issue lists the 50 largest industrial corporations outside the United States.

GUIDES TO BIOGRAPHICAL DIRECTORIES

Reference Book of Corporate Managements. Parsippany, N.J.: Dun's Marketing Service, 1967-. 4 volumes. Annual.

Provides brief biographical information on thousands of principal officers and directors of more than 12,000 leading companies. Arranged by company name; volume 4, the "Cross-Reference" volume, includes an index of executives as well as the geographical and SIC index.

Who's Who in Finance and Industry. Chicago: Marguis Who's Who, 1936-. Biennial.

Lists over 22,000 North American and international business executives. Each biographical profile includes educational back- ground, career history, political, civic and religious affiliations, special achievements, and personal data.

OTHER SPECIAL DIRECTORIES

Koeh, Karin E., and Susan Bogles Martin, eds. Encyclopedia of Associations. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1956-. 4 volumes. Annual. Contains brief information on over 18,000 nonprofit American organizations of national scope and includes sections on trade, business and commercial organizations, commodity exchanges, chamber of commerce, and other types of organizations relevant to business. Entries include organization's address, telephone number, chief executive officer, founding date, and number of members and staff. Conference dates, major publications and list of name changes are included in most entries.

INTERNET BUSINESS DIRECTORIES

There are a number of business directories that are available online. These include:

Disclosure (Use FirstSearch through OPAC)
Worldscope (Use FirstSearch through OPAC)
Access Business Online
Thomas Register of American Manufacturers
Fortune 500
Hoover's Corporate Directory
EDGAR

Check out Yahoo for a list of company directories available from other sites. Includes International Net Directory, The Dutch Yellow Pages, and the Swiss Company Index.
BizWebSpecialized directory for locating company and product information.
American Stock Exchange site lists information on companies, such as volume traded, last stock price, etc. and links to the company's home page, if there is one.
The Insider links to sites of public companies.
Investor Web links also to public companies.
NYNEX Interactive Yellow Pages is a search tool that will assist you in finding and address or telephone number. You can search by the name of the company, the type of business, and limit by city or state.

NEWS REPORTS:
Yahoo for recent news stories courtesty of Reuters NewMedia.
PR Newswire provides news on public and private comapnies.

Excerpt from Guide to Business Research by Leanne Gardner Strum
©Copyright Leanne Gardner Strum, 2000.