Research Guides: Healthcare Entrepreneurship: Company & Industry

About Company Research

Larger companies are usually easier to research than smaller privately held companies. For many small and private companies you may be limited to information the company releases and/or any media coverage. With some private companies, the only information you can find is about the owners. In those cases, here are two strategies:

Identify the owners by name and then research them in news sources and on the Internet.
Understand the industry and then evaluate their products/services against the industry.

To find registered business owners, go to the Secretary of State website corporate listings for the relevant state. On the Walker Library page, there are also Research Guides for Public and Private Companies.

General Business Sources (includes company and industry news & information)

Hoovers (formerly OneSource)
Includes company and industry profiles as well as SWOT's and analyst reports.
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Includes 80,000+ international companies and their executives as well as 350,000+ U.S. and Canadian public and private companies and their executives.
Mergent
Includes financial information for the past 15 quarters/ years which can be downloaded into Excel. Annual reports in PDF format for at least the last 5 years. Quick user guide.
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Provides access to detailed corporate financial histories (including capital changes) and operational histories for international public companies. All current Vanderbilt University students, faculty, and staff have access, but users must come into the Walker Management Library to use this resource. Only the Owen community has off-campus access. Limited to 3 simultaneous users.
Business Source Complete
Articles and current news about a company or industry. For COMPANY: use the drop-down search box on RIGHT SIDE. For INDUSTRY: use RIGHT SIDE search box to choose SUBJECT.
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In addition to covering the major scholarly business journals, BSP also covers company reports, SWOT analyses, working papers, country reports, industry reports and other searchable categories like case studies, book reviews, product reviews, speeches, and interviews. All current Vanderbilt University students, faculty, and staff have access, both on and off campus.
First Research
Contains more than 200 Industry Profiles which are updated every 90 days.
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All current Vanderbilt University students, faculty, staff, and alumni have access to this resource, both on and off-campus. Owen alumni also have access.

Additional Business Sources (for smaller companies and more in-depth business research)

Factiva
Combines business articles and news from Dow Jones and Reuters for both US and the world.
ProQuest
Covers the trade press and business news.
www.bizjournals.com
Business journals for major U.S. cities. Find local news stories on businesses and the key people by major city; use drop down menu at top center of page to select a major U.S. metropolitan area.
Thomas Register
Lists manufacturers and suppliers of products.
Medical Device Link
Contains medical device industry news and events.
Medical News Today
Contains medical device industry news and events.

Search For More Databases

The Walker Management Library has access to dozens of Owen Graduate School of Management and Vanderbilt University licensed databases. These resources provide access to business news and journals, as well as highly specialized content on an extensive range of business topics and research disciplines. Access and use restrictions apply to some resources, and use of these resources imply acceptance of our Copyright and Licensing Restrictions. Databases can be found in the following way: