Research Resources for BU121 Assignments

This guide will support your research for your BU121 assignments. For the Critical Thinking assignment, you may use Omni or library databases under Finding Articles to search for different types of full-text articles, including news, trade, and scholarly titles. For the Career Pitch assignment, you may use Omni or library databases under Finding Articles to search for sources related to your career challenge.  For the Future Leaders Challenge project, in addition to searching for articles, you can also use the resources in the Finding Industry Information section to get information about the industry you are researching.  

Finding Articles

Omni

You may use Omni (the library catalogue) to search for different types of articles like scholarly or trade titles.

• Go to the library homepage
• Click on Omni Advanced Search which offers you options for search (by keyword, title, author, publisher, subject, etc.).       
• On the result page you may refine results by publication type, publication date, subject, language and more, or only show peer-reviewed documents. Consult Getting started with Omni for guidance.

Library Databases

Business Source Complete

A comprehensive database for leading business journals including scholarly, trade, and news titles. Search with keywords related to your research. On the search results page, click on Subject: Thesaurus Terms on the left side to filter your search by subject. You may also limit your search to full text and filter by geography, date, etc. located on the left side of the search results page.

ProQuest One Business

This collection includes databases which contain business and management publications, including scholarly, trade, and news titles. 

Canadian Newsstand

This resource provides access to the full text of Canadian news sources from many Canadian newspapers, including articles, columns, editorials and features.

CBCA Complete (Canadian Business and Current Affairs)

This resource provides access to current events, business, science, the arts, and academic information as produced in Canada indexing over a thousand periodicals and daily news sources, plus several hundred available in full text. 

Scholars Portal Journals

This resource provides access to the full text of scholarly journal articles. Search with keywords related to your research. Click the link to subject terms below an article title to find more articles grouped under a specific subject quickly.

Factiva

A reputable full-text resource with news and business information drawn from worldwide sources, including Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, and the KW Record. It also includes many full text articles from magazines and scholarly journals in all subject areas. Consult the Factiva LibGuide for search tips.

Nexis Uni

Provides full-text documents for international news, business, legal research, and key people in the news. To search for news articles, enter keywords or news source into the top search field, choose News from the All Content Types dropdown list.

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Finding Industry Information

Statistics Canada

Contains thousands of tables and reports from all fields and provides fast access to a large range of the latest statistics available in Canada. Enter keywords into the search box. Filter by subject, geography or survey if applicable before running a search. To use a data table, click on the title and use "Add/Remove Data" tab to get customized data. 

Industry Canada

Includes Canadian industry profiles.

Canadian Industry Statistics

Presents and analyzes industry data on a number of economic indicators using the latest annual data sources from Statistics Canada. Enter a keyword or NAICS code in the search box. 

Financial Performance Data

Provides access to financial data based on Canadian industry averages, including more than 30 performance benchmarks to help small businesses determine how they measure up to their competitors. The reports are representative of all businesses operating within the specified industry and geographic area and earning revenues ranges of $30 thousand to $5 million and $5 million to $20 million in total annual revenues and by profit margin. There is an option to include your own income statement and balance sheet information in the report. Step by step guidance: How to create a report using Financial Performance Data.

IBISWorld

Provides Canadian, US, and Chinese industry reports containing trends, statistics & analysis on market size, market share of major companies, industry growth rates, major market segments and key external forces affecting supply and demand within the industry. Enter industry keywords, NAICS code, or company names in the search box. 

Passport

Offers industry/market analysis and forecasting. Select an industry from drop-down "Industries" menu at the top, or enter keywords for your industry in the search box to bring up relevant titles. You can find statistics or country reports on industries. Alternatively, look under "Explore categories" on the main page, select Industries from the dropdown menu, then expand the category tree to select subcategories and geography. This provides access to detailed statistics and data on subindustries.

Marketline

Provides industry reports and analysis including Porter's Five Forces analysis. Enter in keywords in the search box in the middle and select "Industry Profiles" from drop-down menu in the right box. Or click on Sectors at the top left corner and select a sector from the drop-down menu.

ProQuest One Business

Type industry name or keywords in the search box in the top field, then select "Industry Report" under "Document type", and click "Search". Alternatively, click "Industry Reports" under "Featured Reports" on the left panel, then enter industry name or keywords in the top field before clicking Search.

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Citing Sources

The resources below will help you create and use citations in your report effectively and correctly.

Citing Sources

The Laurier Library provides guidance on citing in APA and other styles. You may watch a tutorial on how to cite.

Business Citation Guide

Developed by business librarians at Bronfman Business Library at York University, this guide puts together great examples on citing business resources including books, articles, industry reports, company reports, and analyst reports from databases.

Citing Use of Generative AI

The Laurier Library provides guidance on citing AI tools like ChatGPT both in-text and in the reference list in APA and other styles. 

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