Don't cram before an interview!
Instead of reading up on an industry the night before the interview, start as soon as you realize which industries interest you.
You can keep up-to-date with the industries via trade journals and blogs. It's easy to do with RSS (e.g. NewsBlur or CommaFeed), email alerts, including weekly or daily email newsletters.
Industry Information
Find industry trends, concerns, and major players via industry and association resources. See our website for additional industry information sources.
- Associations UnlimitedAssociations often provide free industry data and white papers that cover important regulatory and market trends. Use this for finding the associations that you should be looking at.
- Fitch Solutions Country Industry ReportsMore than 100 industry and country reports by Fitch Solutions Country Industry Reports are available via ProQuest. Search the Advanced Search screen with Fitch Solutions Country Industry Reports pb("Fitch Solutions Country Industry Reports ") to limit results.
- First Research Industry ReportsFirst Research industry profiles include industry trends, benchmark data, and call prep questions. Access via ProQuest, Mergent Intellect, and CareerBeam.
- Frost & SullivanEmerging technologies in chemicals, materials, healthcare, IT, transportation, defense, and other areas.
- IBISWorldReports on more than 700 industries covering the USA, Canada, China. Includes ratios, cost structure, and related industries.
Finding an Industry Report
There are several library resources for industry reports. Try IBISWorld or Business Source Complete to get you started on industry reports. If you are looking for B2B industry report, try Frost & Sullivan. If you are searching for tech related industry reports, try Technavio.
- IBISWorldprovides industry research reports and profiles for over 700 United States industries as well as a wide range of industries in China. IBISWorld is a great starting point for understanding an industry, including niche and emerging industries.
- Business Source Completeprovides full text for scholarly business journals and other sources, including full text for more than 1,800 peer-reviewed business publications. It also includes industry and country reports from Euromonitor and company and industry reports from Datamonitor.
Example: Get a report on the advertising industry in China from Business Source Complete:
- Access Business Source Complete
- Click the link for Thesaurus from the top menubar.
- Type Advertising in the search box and click the Browse button.
- Check the box next to Advertising and click the Add button. Then click the Search button.
- Under Publication Type, check the box next to Industry Profiles.
- Click the link for PDF Full Text of Advertising Industry Profile: China to access the Marketline report.
- Frost & SullivanIn-depth market research and strategy reports with European and global coverage of the following areas: Aerospace & Defense; Automotive & Transportation; Chemicals, Materials and Food; Electronics & Security; Energy & Power Supplies; Environment & Building Technologies; Healthcare; Industrial Automation & Process Control; Information & Communication Technologies; Measurement & Instrumentation. Covers 1998 to present, updated as new reports are produced.
- TechnavioTechnavio provides market research reports for a variety of global industries, including technology, healthcare, retail, energy, aerospace, consumer goods and automotive. Unlimited report viewing is available, but each Cornell email address is limited to 20 downloads per month.
- Capital IQA unique platform combing detailed information on investment banking, private equity, corporations, investment management, professional services, and brokerage.
To get a industry report in Capital IQ:
- Access Capital IQ via your account or the dedicated computers in the library.
- Click the Research tab from the top menubar.
- Filter by Report Type from the drop down menu to view just the industry reports
Finding Industry Codes
What is an industry code?
SIC and NAICS are classification systems for industries. They allow you to group together companies in a specific industry in a standardized way.
Where can I find industry codes? SIC and NAICS codes and code definitions are available from the Census website.
Trade Publications
Find trade publications and associations from the reference section at the end of the industry surveys available via Capital IQ. Also check with a Career Advisor in the CMC for advice on specific industry journals to read. Some examples are listed below.
- AdvaMed SmartBriefDaily summaries of the medical technology industry's top news stories.
- AdvertisingAgeNews about branding, advertising, media, and people in marketing.
- FierceFinanceDaily news on the banking industry, asset management, capital markets and SEC regulations. Fierce also has similar sites for biotech, IT, telecom, et cetera.
- Nilson ReportFlagship trade journal for the payments industry.