Help for Job Hunters

Thu, 07/05/2007 - 1:36pm by Nicole R

Whether you’re a new graduate looking for your first job or a seasoned professional making a change, the AADL has tools to help with your job search.

The ReferenceUSA database provides company descriptions, links to news articles, and corporate family trees to help you learn about potential employers. Plus, you can find mailing addresses and a management directory to help get those cover letters and resumes to the right people!

Access the database from the Business and Investment section of our Research page. From the ReferenceUSA home page, choose “US Businesses” to start searching.

And, Library cardholders can access ReferenceUSA from home!

Much ado about black swans

Sun, 07/01/2007 - 5:24pm by remnil

Fans of quirky business books, rejoice! In the vein of Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point and Blink and James Surowiecki's The Wisdom of Crowds comes Nassim Taleb's The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable. The title already ranks #2 on Amazon's business bestseller list.

Like Gladwell and Surowiecki's thought-provokers, The Black Swan starts with a simple concept - that big, society-altering events are unpredictable - and shows how this concept affects business, history, and predicting the vagaries of the market. Not surprisingly, things like markets and history don't move in easy-to-spot patterns, so we have to come to expect the unexpected.

Also, check out The Long Tail author Chris Anderson's thoughts on Amazon.com.

Big business. $16 billion worth, to be exact.

Thu, 06/21/2007 - 7:02pm by remnil

This week, the epic contest heated up between two great aerospace manufacturers: United States' Boeing and Europe's Airbus. The two companies are showing off their wares at the biannual Paris Air Show. Highlights include Airbus's massive A380, which can seat over 800 people, and Boeing's speedy 787 Dreamliner. Airbus seems to be pulling ahead, with a $16 billion (yes, that's a "b") order from Qatar Airlines for its A380.

Airbus and Boeing are no novices to competition. Quite to the contrary, while the two companies dominate non-military aircraft production, they are fiercely competitive with each other. Their rivalry is the subject of former government advisor John Newhouse's latest book.

Martha Stewart, scrapbooking maven

Thu, 06/07/2007 - 8:54pm by remnil

According to a recent article in The Economist (you will need to login to your AADL account to follow the link), a familiar figure is poised to take the scrapbooking world by storm: Martha Stewart. Her company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, recently released a new line of scrapbooking supplies that will undoubtedly sell well and bear Stewart's characteristic sense of style.

Stewart comes relatively late to scrapbooking, which was a $2.6 billion industry in 2006, according to the Craft & Hobby Association. But her company's size and dedicated following still place it in a good position become a market leader.

Are you a scrapbooker? What do you think of Stewart's new products? Interested in getting into scrapbooking? Check out a few of our books on how to organize and display your family memories in scrapbooks.

Amazon.com, the iTunes killer?

Thu, 05/24/2007 - 2:35pm by remnil

Amazon.com and EMI recently announced that they're launching a new online music store a la iTunes, and that announcement set music and copyright watchers atwitter. Why? Because the songs will lack digital rights management. This means audiophiles will be able to copy and burn songs onto whatever and however often they want: mp3 players, cds, other computers, etc.

Many record companies (aside from EMI, of course) feel that such a move will be the death of their industry. Or maybe, as Wired editor Chris Anderson says in The Long Tail, open access and niche markets are the logical progression of the internet. Regardless, digital media like mp3s are changing the way we interact and do business. And we're have to change the way we think about copyright in the digital era.

What do you think? Will less copyright protection mean more sales for Amazon and EMI? Could Amazon become the iTunes killer?

Start Your Own Business Boot Camp

Wed, 05/23/2007 - 11:45am by ulrich

If you're thinking about starting a business you can get a some great help by attending the 'Start Your Own Business' Boot Camp at Washtenaw Community College on May 31. At this forum you will learn about personality traits that impact entrepreneurialism, create a marketing plan for your business, learn about legal, accounting, franchises, business plans and financing options. You will receive one on one counseling with a business expert and have an opportunity to get advice from a variety of business experts and organizations that are available to support new ventures. The fee for the program is $25 and includes breakfast, lunch and materials. For details and to register call (734)484-6707 or (734)821-0075 or register online at the web site above.

Who is this "Cerberus Capital Management," anyway?

Tue, 05/15/2007 - 12:05pm by remnil

With DaimlerChrysler's recent sale of the Chrysler Group to Cerberus Capital Management, you may have been left with the same question I was: who on earth is Cerberus Capital Management?

Fortunately, AADL's fearless research databases (available on the research page) can help us out. The Business and Company Resource Center provides quick access to summaries, financial data, management information, and articles on thousands of companies, including Cerberus Capital Management. Check it out!

Toyota: Largest automobile manufacturer in the world?

Wed, 05/09/2007 - 5:23pm by remnil

With a 9 percent rise in its 4th quarter earnings last year, Toyota is continuing its meteoric rise in size and influence. Many analysts forecast that Toyota is poised to overtake General Motors as the largest automaker in the world.

How did the automobile industry get here? And what does it mean for Michigan? There are plenty of opinions on these questions. But what about those of us who live here in GM's backyard? What do you think? Click "Add a new comment" and tell us!

I Read It in the New York Times

Thu, 05/03/2007 - 8:56am by Debbie G.

And that makes it official. Zingerman's, according to the front page of the May 3rd NYT business section, is one of the best run and most fun companies in the world. Did you know AADL library card holders can read the entire New York Times full-text back to 1851 through the AADL research page? The coolest part is the full-page images of historical editions with banner headlines, advertising and pictures.

Inventor? Entrepreneur? Investor? Check out the New Enterprise Forum

Mon, 03/12/2007 - 1:17pm by ulrich

If you have an invention you are trying to market you might consider connecting with the New Enterprise Forum to network with other inventors, investors and entrepreneurs. The Forum will be hosting an event on Thursday, March 15 at 5:45 at the Holiday Inn North Campus (3600 Plymouth Rd.)The featured speakers, Hugo Braun, of North Coast Technology Investors, and Rajesh Kothari of Seneca Partners, will discuss "Perspectives on the Investor/Entrepreneur Relationship." The program is free to members and $20.00 for non-members. The organization's mission is "to link entrepreneurs with management expertise, joint venture partners, business services, capital and other critical resources."