The resources on this page will help you understand the process of finding information that will help you make decisions about the many factors involved in managing an organizations.
Research is detective work. You will be gathering data and information that you will piece together to form a picture of a particular business environment. Be prepared to search multiple sources using both library databases and websites.
While finding information about large multi-national companies like Starbucks is much easier than finding information about local companies such as Festival Foods or Moka or a small family-owned business, the components and activities of all organizations, large or small are similar -- competition, supply chains, process, forecasting, inventory, etc.
The Starbucks example below shows the type of detective work you will be engaged in. The database, Business Insights, is the go-to database for researching major companies. Notice the highlighted terms in the screenshots below. They represent the clues you will be gathering - the type of business information and data you will be looking for no matter what size the company you are researching.
On the next page you will see examples of how to research a local company.
For information about large corporations, the library database Business: Insights is your best bet. 
When you open Business: Insights you will see Starbucks listed as one of the Most Searched Companies.
Click on the link to open the Starbucks page. You will see
These three sections contain a lot of valuable information about the information you will need for your assignment. This is where the detective work begins. You need to read carefully to flesh out information that mention company strategies, influences, and other important factors that have given Starbucks a competitive advantage for decades.
Jot down key words, phrases, sentences, and data that indicate the strategies your company uses to gain a competitive advantage. 
Ex. Keywords from an excerpt under Company History
Continue in this manner through any information you find. By building a list of terms and phrases the picture of your company's competitive advantage will become clearer.
Another excellent source of information can be a company's website. Some companies provide more information than others, but it's always worth a try. There may be a few tiny clues even in a small amount of information.
You can find the "About" feature at either the top or bottom of the company's home page. (For Starbucks, scroll to the bottom of the home page.) On any company's website, look for words like:
Starbucks has several links that could yield useful information.
You can find short easy-to-read articles in the library database, Credo Reference. Articles are written from a variety of perspectives. Some topics provide a Mind Map so you can see different aspects branching off the main topic. See the list of articles below. Notice keywords like "espresso" and "coffeehouse."
