Getting Started
Welcome! This page will help you navigate the best research sources and strategies for your job search.
The Cornell Tech Library Services team offers support via email and consultations. You can reach us via library@tech.cornell.edu.
We work with the Career Management team at Tech to teach you how to find information on companies and industries so you can stand out in your interviews, create lists of potential companies where you may want to work, or find company SWOTs and reports to name a few of our career research services.
Looking for research support for your new startup? We can help! Contact us to learn more about our entrepreneurship support services.
Tech Interview Books
Short on Time?
Are you attending a networking session for a company you know little about and you have only 30 minutes to prep? Do you have a lead about a job opportunity and want to quickly check out what you can about the company?
When short on time, tackle these two areas first:
Review the company's website: If you're looking at a large publicly-traded company, take a look at their press releases and news section to better understand what they want you to know about the company. If they are a small startup and have an online presence, pay attention to the information they are sharing with the public. (If you have a few more minutes - For publicly traded companies, take a look at their quarterly (SEC 10Q) or annual reports (SEC 10K). For privately held firms, take a look at Pitchbook to learn more, including who is investing and how much).
Research your industry space: Read an industry profile in IBISWorld, Frost & Sullivan, or Technavio. First Research Industry Profiles are great because they provide you with Call Prep Questions. These can be found using Mergent Intellect > First Research.
General Career Books
Keeping up to date
Please note that some of these resources require an individual subscription for additional content.
- The Information
Articles covering the technology industry. Requires a subscription.
- Masters of Scale
Podcast hosted by Reid Hoffman covering company growth.
- Stratechery
Articles and podcasts analyzing the strategy and business side of technology and media, and the impact of technology on society.
- Techmeme
Aggregates articles on tech.
- Wired
Articles covering technology, business, and culture.
- Recode
Tech and business news.
- TechCrunch
Site dedicated to technology including start-ups, new products, and tech news.
- Wired
Covers how technology changes affect our culture, business, science, and design.
- Not Impossible
Example of emerging tech site; great for idea generation.
- CIO
Targets CIOs and other IT leaders providing insight on tech trends and IT's role in achieving business goals.
- FT.com Technology Companies
Financial Times articles covering the tech space. Get your FT.com account using your Cornell email address (must first register using Cornell Univeristy Library's website instructions)
- NY Times Bits
Tech articles from NYTimes.
- WSJ Digits
Wall Street Journal blog on tech industry.
Creating Lists of Companies
These are some of the core resources that will let you create a list of companies that match criteria you specify (such as where they are located, their indusries, size, etc.).
- Capital IQA unique platform combing detailed information on investment banking, private equity, corporations, investment management, professional services, and brokerage. First-time users click here to sign up for an account using your Cornell email address. After your account has been approved, click here to access the database.
- Foundation DirectoryUse to create a list of public and private foundations in the U.S.
- GuideStar PremiumSearchable directory that provides detailed information on more than 850,000 nonprofit (501) organizations. Profiles cover mission and programs, financials, leaders, and most importantly, full text via PDF of the charity's IRS 990 filing from 1998 forward in most cases. Form 990 provides information on revenues, expenses, programs, activities, executive salaries and board members. Parts of the database are only available to licensed institutions, but the site contains significant free content. Access to some free content requires registration
- Leadership ConnectFormerly Leadership Library, Leadership Connect allows searching and browsing within individual directories or across all directories using single or multiple criteria, such as name, job title, industry, and geographical location.
- UniworldThe authoritative source of information on multinational firms operating around the world. U.S. companies listed have a substantial investment in overseas operations--wholly or partially owned subsidiary affiliate or branch [sic]. Non U.S. companies (foreign firms) listed have substantial investment within the United States--Introductory page. Databases may be searched by country, region, state, keyword, zip code or postal code, industry code, revenue and number of employees. Search results can be viewed in HTML and printed, or downloaded into Microsoft Excel.
Building Skills
- Lynda.comLynda.com is a constantly growing online library of more than 1400 courses and 82,000 videos in streaming video format. Self-paced courses are offered at different skill levels in over 140 specialties. Subjects covered range from 3D + Animation; Audio; Business including Office and Google software; Design; Developer; Photography and Video; and Web and social media. Videos use screenshots, narration, live action, smart boards, charts and graphics, audio and include captioning.
Consulting
- CQ InteractiveCQ Interactive, a companion to the Case in Point books, provides practice case questions and interview guidance. It is ideal when preparing for case-based interviews.
Case in Point: Graph Analysis for Consulting and Case Interviews by ISBN: 9781537143231Publication Date: 2016-09-12
