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Six Step Job Search Ladder

Library and Internet Resources for Superior Job Searches

Thorough preparation is a key component to a successful job interview.  As you seek the exact job offer you want, knowing your target company's history, competitors, industry and culture both impresses your interview panel and helps distinguish you from other candidates.

Follow the steps below to ensure that you rise to the top when searching for your ideal job. Click a step number and you'll see recommended paper and electronic resources -- the best job search strategies will generally consult both types of materials.

STEP WHAT YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH
One Consult the Career Management Center
Two Locate Job Listings
Three Target a Specific Company
Four Research an Industry
Five Network
Six Learn about Company Culture
And To Stay At the Top... Additional Resources

 

STEP ONE -- The Career Management Center

All Johnson students are encouraged to consult with the Career Management Center (CMC) staff when preparing for job interviews or at any stage of their job search.  Remember -- the CMC is your job search partner.  Their staff are eager to share their career expertise with you, and can even get you in contact with JGSM alumni who now work at a specific company.  Visit them in-person at their offices on the 2nd floor of Sage Hall, or electronically via the Johnson School web site.

STEP TWO -- Locate Job Listings

Though not all MBA jobs are advertised, numerous ads do appear daily in newspapers, on company websites, and in Internet career centers.   Additionally, recruiters regularly visit the Johnson School and meet with interested, qualified candidates; contact the CMC to learn more about on-campus recruiting.

If you know which company you wish to work for, begin checking its website's employment section regularly.  Not only will you be one of the first to see new job postings, but you'll also gain a sense of overall human resources changes in the organization.  Continual turnover may be a red flag of something more serious within the organization.

For a broader selection of job listings, consult the Management Library's Business Internet Index (BII).  The BII provides a selected collection of job listing websites as well as selected online resume posting services.  The BII also has selected salary information resources and MBA occupational profiles.

STEP THREE -- COMPANY RESEARCH

Now that you've located pertinent job listings, you need to locate information about specific companies. 


A.  IS THE COMPANY PRIVATE OR PUBLIC?

Developing your career search strategy will depend in part on the company's status -- public company information is more readily available than private company information.  Use a company directory to determine a particular company's status.  

NOTE:  If you don't have a specific company in mind, use Career Search to help find appropriate firms.  This database, which is available remotely to the Cornell Community, allows a user to develop a list of companies based on selected criteria such as industry, location, size of the firm or annual sales. Updated monthly, this database includes summary data on over 200,000 companies. 

 

PAPER RESOURCES ONLINE RESOURCES
 

Selected General Directories:

  • Million Dollar Directory, Ready Reference, HF 5035 M65

  • Directory of Corporate Affiliations, Ready Reference, HG 4057 A21 -- Includes information on public, private, international and American companies.

  • World Business Directory, Ready Reference HG 4009 W67

Selected Specialized Directories:

  • Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries, Ready Reference, T12 D582
  
  • Thomson Research -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.   Contains annual reports, other SEC filings, as well as 10 years of annual financials downloadable in Excel format for public companies only. Thomson Research is international in scope.

For more recommended online resources, see the Company Profiles/Directories section of the BII, our Business Internet Index.

 

B. WHAT IS THE COMPANY'S HISTORY AND PROFILE?

Once you know the company's status, it's time to take another step and research the company's history. Short factual histories as well as more expansive descriptions are invaluable information.

PAPER RESOURCES ONLINE RESOURCES

Public Companies:
  • International Directory of Company Histories, Reference, HD 2721 I62

Private Companies:

  • Everybody's Business: A Field Guide to the Leading 400 Companies in America, HD 2741 E93, Career Planning Section (First Floor)

Specialized Company Coverage:

  • Hoover's Handbooks -- Hoover's publishes a range of   reference books that provide information about different types of companies.   Selected titles include:  Hoover's Handbook of Private Companies, HF 5035 H78, Ready Reference; Hoover's Handbook of Emerging Companies, HG 4057 A32, Ready Reference; Hoover's Handbook of World Business, HG 4009 H78, Ready Reference.

  
  • Cornell Library Catalog  HINT:  Use the company name as a subject.  For example, s=arthur d little

  • Hoover's Online -- Provides brief profiles for over 10,000 companies.  Search for companies by name, ticker symbol, keyword search, or industry.

NOTE:   A more complete Hoover's report is available to members of
the Cornell Community via LEXISNEXIS . On  LEXISNEXIS 's main page, click on Business, then choose the Company Financial link. Type in a
company name, then select Hoover's Company Reports from the pull-down Source box.
  • The company's website.

For more recommended online resources, see the Company Information section of the BII, our Business Internet Index.

C. FIND COMPANY FINANCIALS

For public companies, a great deal of financial information is available.  For private companies, however, check their website and then conduct article research. 

PAPER RESOURCES ONLINE RESOURCES

Annual Reports:
  • An extensive collection of major AMEX and NYSE companies is located on the Library's 2nd floor.

Financials:

  • Mergent Manuals, Ready Reference -- Blue pages in the center of each manual contain financial data.  Manuals cover OTC Unlisted, Public Utility, Industrial, Transportation, International, etc.

Remember that financial data for  American public companies is readily available in multiple sources due to US financial filing regulations.  It will be trickier to locate financial data for private companies because they are not obligated to disclose financial information.

Annual Reports:
  • PRARS -- Provides a free mailing service of hard copies of annual reports, prospectuses or 10k's on over 3,200 public companies.

Financials:

  • Thomson Research --  Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.   Contains annual reports and other SEC filings, as well as 10 years of annual financials downloadable in Excel format. Thomson Research is international in scope.
  • Bloomberg -- Available in the Library.  Good source for market performance data on worldwide publicly traded companies.  Can print but not download data.
  • Research Insight -- Available in the Library.  Annually updated set of compact disks that contain financial information on publicly traded U.S. companies. Twenty years of annual data, ten years of quarterly data and five years of daily stock prices are reported. Also included are business segment information, market data, and ratios.
  • Multex Investor -- Allows for searches by industry, name, or ticker symbol. Such information as margins, valuation ratios, and total debt are given.

For more recommended online resources, see the Annual Reports/ Financials section of the BII, our Business Internet Index.

D. FIND RECENT ARTICLES

Article research will provide both substantive and current information about companies and their strategies.  It is particularly useful to consult articles when researching private companies. 

ONLINE RESOURCES
 
  • Factiva -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Contains 8000 journals and newspapers, mostly in full-text format.
  • ProQuest Direct -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Contains academic and popular business literature, 60-70% in full-text. Articles can be downloaded, printed, or e-mailed (with a few exceptions).

  • LexisNexis -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Contains full-text articles and abstracts from newspapers and business magazines worldwide, as well as wire stories.

  • Business Source Premier -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Provides full-text for nearly 930 journals covering business, management, economics, finance, banking and accounting. It also includes abstracts and indexing for over 1500 business magazines and periodicals from 1984 to present. Has all issues of the Harvard Business Review. 

TIP: Consult our comprehensive guide for Article Research.

 

STEP FOUR -- Research the Industry

It's important to understand the structure, trends, strengths and weaknesses of the industries covered by your target company.  Note that articles from the article section above will also include industry information. 

PAPER RESOURCES ONLINE RESOURCES
 
  • Standard & Poor's Industry Surveys, Ready Reference, HG 4921 S78 I39 -- Provide broad industry overviews.
  • Encyclopedia of Emerging Industries, Ready Reference, HC 102 E533, Reference -- Includes hard-to-find industries such as retirement villages and juice bars.

  • Dun and Bradstreet/Gale  Industry Reference Handbooks. This series contains very current, informative data.  Industries covered include (all in Ready Reference): Pharmaceuticals HD 9665.3 D86, Reference; Chemicals HD 9650.3 D86, Reference; Health and medical services R 711 D86, Reference; Computers and software HD 9696 C6 D86, Reference; Telecommunications HE 7601 D86.
  
  • Market Insight -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Electronic source of S&P Industry Surveys.

  • First Call -- Web-based resource available in the Library. Provides full-text research notes, earnings estimates, and fundamental analyses from brokerage firms on publicly traded U.S. and international
    companies. Notes are retained for forty-five days.
  • Factiva -- Database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Allows you to compare a firm's stock performance against market indices. 
  • STAT-USA: Federal database available remotely to the Cornell Community.  Covers well the following international areas: trade opportunity leads,
    international industry, market analysis, imports, exports, and guides for U.S. companies doing business in different countries.

Read our FAQ of Industry Research questions. Also, consult the Industry Information section of the BII, our Business Internet Index.

 

STEP FIVE -- Networking

As you attend functions at the Johnson School, and make additional business contacts elsewhere, keep in mind that almost everyone you meet could be either a direct or indirect source of job leads. Not all jobs are advertised, and sometimes merely knowing someone who works in an organization will be a crucial first step inside that organization. 

STEP SIX -- Coporate Culture

Knowing how you personally will "fit" a firm's particular culture shouldn't be overlooked as you seek your dream job; far better to know in advance how the firm's style matches your own, than to accept a tempting job offer and find that your personality does not match.  Several recommended resources for learning about a company's personality are:

  • talk to current or former employees of the company

  • contact JGSM alumni who are or have been associated with the company.  Get in touch with these individuals by using one of the several versions of the JGSM Alumni Directory -- a print version is available on reserve in the library and there is an electronic version online.

  • consult "insider" publications that describe what it's actually like to be an employee.  On reserve in the library are selected publications by WetFeet Press and Vault Reports (check the reserve notebook at the Circulation Desk).  Both of these series give frank views of specific companies (ie. McKinsey and Co.) and certain industries (ie. consulting and venture capital). NOTE: Vault Reports are also available as e-books via the Library Catalog.

Staying At the Top of the Job Search Ladder

You may set up a consultation with the reference staff at the Management Library at multiple points during your job search. We will show you resources to find the information for your particular needs (industry, specialty, geographic location, etc.) at each stage of the process. Sign-up for a consultation today.

Additionally, several general sources of career information that may help you in your job quest are:

  • The materials in the Management Library's Career Planning Collection on the 1st floor of the Management Library.  Here you'll find career-related books such as The 100 Best Companies to Work for in America as well as selected recruiting information filed in binders.  These binders will give you an idea of the image a firm would like to project, may help familiarize you with the products it manufactures, or identify the standard career paths available in the company.
  • On Reserve in the Library are three Harvard Business School Career Guides, one for Finance, one for Marketing, and another for Management Consulting.

  • If you are keen to work in a specific geographic area, it's always wise to read local news for that region.  You can do this via several means:

    • Factiva -- This database is available remotely to members of the Cornell Community.  It allows you to select publications pertinent to specific American states, or newspapers from specific towns/cities. 

    • Free Internet news services.  The web is rife with online versions of paper newspapers as well as Net-only companies such as Yahoo! that provide local news.   Websites such as Total News organize news by state.a

Do you have ideas for job search topics not covered here? Send your suggestions to Angela Horne, Reference Librarian at akh8@cornell.edu