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General Business Research

This guide is for the specialization General Business. It contains resources available in the Library.

North American Industry Classification System

Begin by identifying your industry of interest and finding relevant SIC and NAICS codes by visiting the Standard Industrial Classification Search (SIC) and North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) websites.

Once you have identified your industry and its associated code, you may locate industry surveys, overviews, and reports in the Library databases. 

NAICS Codes for IT

Library Databases for Industry Information

Learn how to find industry reports in our FAQ  - How do I locate industry reports?

Selected Websites for Industry Information

Five Forces Analysis

According to Porter (1980),  "the state of competition in an industry depends on five basic competitive forces" (p.3).

The five forces are:

  • threat of new entry,
  • threat of substitution,
  • bargaining power of buyers,
  • bargaining power of suppliers,
  • and competitive rivalry.

Porter, M. E. (1980). Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors. New York: The Free Press.

It may be possible to locate some ready-made Five Forces analysis reports in the Library's Business Source Complete database.

Select the Advanced Search option in Business Source Complete. Enter your industry in the first search box, and "five forces" in the second box. Note that these reports may come from magazine articles; you do not want to limit your search to scholarly/peer-reviewed journals.