Team Librarian Consultation

Foster Business Library Databases:

The Foster Business Library offers an extensive collection of business databases on its homepage; see under Business Databases; see also the four folders at the top of that list for lists of Foster databases by topic:  Books, Articles--Full Text, Articles--Citations and Abstracts, and Company and Industry.   For more information on the three dozen Foster business databases, click here.   For more information on which of the three dozen Foster business databases to use, click here.   For more information on accessing Foster databases from off campus, click here.   For information about responsible database usage, click here.

• Dissertation Abstracts:   Available under Business Databases on the Foster Business Library homepage. This database provides indexing and abstracts for doctoral dissertations and masters theses from over 1,000 Universities and Colleges in the U.S. from 1861 to the present. The citations to dissertations are long and 24-page previews of the dissertations are available online for free.

  A search in this database for Women Business Owners produced 26 theses and dissertations. As an example, see Leadership, ownership, and gender: an investigation of leadership among business owners and business executives (a 1998 George Washington University PhD dissertation).

• Social Sciences Citation Index:   Included in the folder Articles--Citations & Abstracts under Business Databases on the Foster Business Library homepage. This database "is a multidisciplinary index, with searchable author abstracts, covering the journal literature of the social sciences. It indexes more than 1,725 journals spanning 50 disciplines, as well as covering individually selected, relevant items from over 3,300 of the world's leading scientific and technical journals. It "provides access to current information and retrospective data from 1956 forward."

  A search for the topic Women Business Owners produced just eight citations.

• PsycINFO:   Included in the folder Articles--Citations & Abstracts under Business Databases on the Foster Business Library homepage. This database contains citations and summaries of journal articles, book chapters, books, dissertations and technical reports in the field of psychology and on the psychological aspects of many disciplines including business. Over 1,300 periodicals are surveyed by this database, dating from 1987 for English language material. This database is produced by the American Psychological Association which adds 55,000 references annually.

  A search for Women Business Owners produced a list of twelve citations.

• Statistical Universe:   Under Business Databases on the Foster Business Library homepage. Statistical Universe is an index to statistical data in commercial, international and U.S. government publications. Try the Power Tables for quick access to tables of data in GIF format.

  A subject search for "Women-owned businesses" produced a list of 73 tables.

Unlike library databases, most of these online resources are available wherever you have web access; they do not require that you access them via the UW Connectivity Kit or the UW Libraries Proxy Server for authentication. When using web resources, be sure to evaluate the credibility of these resources. For a subject index to web resources, see Business Resources on the Web on the Foster Business Library homepage.

Resource Guide:

• Women and Business Links:   This resource guide is from the Association of College & Research Libraries, part of the American Library Association, and provides annotated links to associations, organizations, centers, biographies of prominent businesswomen, directories of women-owned businesses, newsletters and journals, resources for startups, and sources for statistics. An excellent resource.

  Associations and Research Centers:

• American Business Women Association:   Trade, industry and affinity organizations are often very good sources for information about the industry or area with which they are associated, sometimes with statistics, data, and research that is unavailable elsewhere. This organization, founded in 1949 and with a membership of 55,000, and over 1,000 local groups, represents and promotes women-owned businesses in the United States, offering training, resources, a bimonthly magazine, Women In Business (available online), and more. There is a Puget Sound Interchapter Council that is part of this organization.

• National Association of Women Business Owners:   This organization, with over 80 local groups and a membership of 8,000, represents and promotes women-owned businesses in the United States.

• Center for Women's Business Research:   Founded as the National Foundation for Women Business Owners, this center conducts research in this area. See their Key Facts, Facts of the Week, Research press releases, Resource Guide, and Links to Sites.

• Committee of 200:   This organization, now with more than 200 members, recognizes the leading women executives in various industries. It promotes successful entrepreneurship among women executives and "seeks to strengthen the influence of women business leaders." See their C200 Business Leadership Index 2003 for a current membership list (36 pages in PDF format) which includes women executives and board members in Fortune 500 companies as well as women owned businesses. See also their Research and Resources section and Recommended Links.

• Forum for Women Entrepreneurs:   "Founded in 1993, the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs ... is the premier entrepreneurial service organization for women building high-growth technology and life science companies." This organization has a Pacific Northwest chapter. See their Business Directory and Resources.

• U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce:   "As the leading advocate for women on economic and leadership issues, the USWCC is creating economic and leadership opportunities for women by building a strong community voice, lobbying for you, and providing programs and benefits to support the growth of our women across America." See their Advocacy Center and Special Reports.

• Women Presidents' Organization:   This nonprofit organization consists of women presidents who have "guided their businesses to at least $2 billion in gross sales (or $1 million for a service-based business)." The association has more than two dozen local chapters across the U.S., including a chapter in Seattle, and stages annual conferences.

• WINGS:   WINGS stands for Women in New Growth Stages, an organization that, in its own words, "works with you, the entry level to business owner to help find the resources you need to get through your career and life transitions without reinventing the wheel, but by promoting the resources that already exist. WINGS' focus is women and works side by side with men." See their Resources.

  Governmental, Other:

• National Women's Business Council:   "The National Women's Business Council is a bi-partisan Federal advisory council created to serve as an independent source of advice and policy recommendations to the President, Congress, and the U.S. Small Business Administration on economic issues of importance to women business owners. The Council's mission is to promote bold initiatives, policies and programs designed to support women's business enterprises at all stages of development in the public and private sector marketplaces, from start-up to success to significance." See their Research, Key Facts, and Links To Other Resources.

• Surveys of Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprises:   The U.S. Census Bureau provides extensive data from the 1997 Economic Census on ownership of business enterprises by minorities and women at this site; the Economic Census is conducted every five years. The data is available for the U.S., for each state, county, place and for Metropolitan Statistical Areas.

• Washington State Office of Minority and Women's Business Enterprises:   This agency's mission is to ensure an equitable public contracting and procurement environment in Washington state in which all qualified businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, including minorities and women, may participate. This site includes bid lists and contracting opportunities, a directory of nearly 3,000 minority firms in the state, and a frequently-asked questions area (among other resources).

• Seattle Office, Small Business Administration:   This site offers a wealth of free resources for starting, financing and expanding a business. See particularly the State and Outside Resources links and the 1999 Small Business Profile: Washington (the most recent one available). The Demographics, Women and Minorities, at the SBA's Office of Advocacy, also includes statistics on minorities and women in business and as business owners. See also their Online Women's Business Center, supporting "America's 9.1 million women-owned businesses employ 27.5 million people and contribute $3.6 trillion to the economy."

• U.S. Department of Labor, Women's Bureau:   "The U.S. Department of Labor Women's Bureau, established by Congress in 1920, is the only federal agency mandated to represent working women in the public policy process. Its mission is to promote the welfare of wage-earning women, improve their working conditions, increase their efficiency, and advance their opportunities for profitable employment." See their Publications and Statistics.

• Fortune Magazine's Most Powerful Women in Business:   Fortune Magazine produces many useful listings of major companies, most admired companies, etc. but this list is especially useful. Unfortunately, the magazine is making it harder to access these lists online, requiring registration or subscription in some cases. In any case, Fortune Magazine is available, in hard copy, in the Foster Business Library Periodicals Collection as well as in some of the Libraries' full text databases, if this link later proves to be dead.

The Foster Business Library reference collection consists of business handbooks, encyclopedias, dictionaries and other quick reference tools. It is located behind the Reference Desk in the center of the library's first floor. The reference works listed below are arranged according to call number and, since none of these books circulate, they should always be available--except when in use by a library user.
• Statistical abstract of the United States.
  Information about many industries as well as demographic information; check index for references to tables. The sources for each table are often a valuable source of additional information. See tables 718 and 719 on Women Business Owners on page 484.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HA202 .U56 2002.
  Also available online.

• American business leaders: from colonial times to the present.
  Two-page biographies of male and female American business executives, in two volumes.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HC102.5 .A2 .H36 1999.

• The encyclopedia of management.
  This one-volume covers 348 management topics, arranged alphabetically from Activity-Based Costing to Zero-Sum Game. See Women in Business and Industry on pages 995 to 999.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD30.15 E49 2000.

• Business: the ultimate resource.
  This 2,200-page single volume is "designed to offer a wide range of insights, information, and practical guidance on every aspect of management" via 2.5 million words of text from 200 contributors, with 700 illustrations and 150 maps, in seven major sections including best practice, a management library, business thinkers and management giants, a business dictionary, a world business almanac, and a guide to business sources. See Breaking the lead ceiling on pages 237 to 238.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD38.15 .B878 2002.

• Directory of certified minority, women's and disadvantaged business enterprises.
  Issued by the Washington State Office of Minority and Women's Business Enterprises, this annual publication lists state-certified minority and women's owned businesses in this state.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD2346 .U52 .W385 2003.

• Women in management worldwide.
  This collection of essays provides facts, figures, and analysis about women in management worldwide, as well as in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD6054.3 .W66 2004.

  See the United States on pages 195 to 208.

• Historical encyclopedia of American women entrepreneurs: 1776 to the present.
  Two to three-page essays on a wide variety of women entrepreneurs in the U.S.
  Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HF3023 .A2 .064 2000.

The Foster Business Library maintains a collection of over 70,000 books on all business topics. To identify relevant books, go to the UW Libraries Catalog on the Foster Business Library homepage (under Business Databases). Try searching by keyword. Use the Limit/Sort feature to create a list of books in the Foster Business Library and in order from newest book to oldest. To do so, use the pulldown menu under WHERE item is located to specify Foster Business Library and click on the box near the bottom Sort results by year. Then click on Limit/sort items retrieved using above data. Clicking on the titles in the resulting list will bring up the full catalog record, indicating which Foster area has the book (general stacks, reference, reserve, etc.), the call number and the circulation status.

Circulation status is indicated in the box in the middle of each online catalog record, on the right. Check Shelf indicates that the book should be on the shelves under that call number and available for you to check out. Due and a date indicates that the book is already checked out to someone and is due back on the date indicated.

The Foster general stacks collection is located south of the main part of the Foster Business Library, through the two pass-throughs into the basement of Balmer. The arrangement is by call number, from A (at the east end, near the Copy Center) to Z (at the far west end).

A keyword search for Women Business Owners retrieved 22 records in the UW Libraries, with just one record in the Foster Business Library collections (a 1987 publication entitled Directory of women business owners, published by the U.S. Department of Commerce).

One of the subject headings produced by this keyword search is Women-owned business enterprises. A search for materials with this subject in the UW Libraries Catalog produced a list of 187 records, in all UW libraries, with 17 records in the Foster Business Library.

Another subject heading produced by the keyword search above was Businesswomen. A subject search for this term produced a list of 291 records in all UW libraries, with 54 records in the Foster Business Library, including:

• The entrepreneurial process: economic growth, men, women, and minorities.   (1997)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD62.5 .R49 1997
• A piece of the action: how women and minorities can launch their own successful businesses.   (1994)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD62.5 .C366 1994
• Enterprising women: lessons from 100 of the greatest entrepreneurs of our day.   (1994)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD6054.4.U6 S55 1994
• Women in business: perspectives on women entrepreneurs.   (1993)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD2341 .W65 1993
• Women as entrepreneurs: a study of female business owners, their motivations, experiences and strategies for success.   (1992)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD2346.G7 W65 1992

Another relevant subject term is Women Executives, with 207 records in the UW Libraries, including 75 records in the Foster Business Library, including:

• Women and men in management.   (2003)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD6054.3 .P69 2003
• Perfect enough: Carly Fiorina and the reinvention of Hewlett-Packard.   (2003)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD9696.A3 U5144 2003
• Going to the top: a road map for success from America's leading women executives.   (2000)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD6054.3 .G35 2000
• Success on our own terms: tales of extraordinary, ordinary business women.   (1998)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD6095 .O27 1998
• Swim with the dolphins: how women can succeed in corporate America on their own terms.   (1995)
  Foster General Stacks, Call number: HD6054.4.U6 G58 1995

There is also a subject term for Women Middle Managers, with three records in the UW Libraries, including one in the Foster Business Library, Stress and the woman manager (1983).

Foster Business Library Articles:

In addition to the 800 journals in the Foster Business Library Periodicals Collection, the Foster Business Library offers access to 11,000 full text periodical articles through its full text article databases such as: ABI/Inform Global, Factiva, and Lexis-Nexis Academic. These article databases may be found on the Foster Business Library homepage, listed alphabetically under Business Databases or in the Articles: Full Text folder.

Of these three main sources, all but Factiva are available from any computer on the campus network (as well as from home) via the UW Connectivity Kit or via the Libraries' proxy server. The easiest of these databases to use is ABI/Inform Global. For more information about accessing Foster Business Library databases from off campus, click here. For more information about business databases, click here.

• ABI/Inform Global:

  This database offers full text articles for over 800 journals. To find articles on specific topics, search by word or phrase by keying your search phrase into the search box. ABI/Inform Global includes journals but not national or Washington state newspapers (though the Wall Street Journal is included). It also does not include valuable trade and industry and other periodicals. Your searches will span the widest possible array of publications by expanding your search to all databases in ABI/Inform. To expand your search to include all collections in this database, click on Select multiple databases, to the right of the search box. Click on all of the databases.

  Your search terms will be highlighted in red in each article. For tips on searching this database, click here.

  As an example, a search in this database, in all collections, for Women Business Owners produced a long list of over 7,600 articles, searching in citations and abstracts; limiting this search to peer-reviewed articles cut the total to 113.

  Alternatively, go to Browse Lists and search for the subject term Women; doing so produces the subject term Women owned businesses. Viewing all articles on this subject produced a list of more than 3,900 articles. Limiting this search just to peer-reviewed publications produced a list of 105 articles. Going back to the subject term Women owned businesses: this term can be narrowed by five subject terms:   Corporate profiles (474 articles), Entrepreneurs (640 articles), Franchising (22 articles), Minority owned businesses (1,445 articles), and Personal profiles (607 articles).

• Online Periodicals:
  (From the Foster Business Library's list of Electronic Journals in business.)

  • Women As Managers:   This biweekly publication is available online. Access is UW-restricted.

  • Women In Business:   This bimonthly magazine is published by the American Business Women Association. Access is UW-restricted.

  • Women in Management Review:   "About the journal:  although women are entering the paid labour force in ever-increasing numbers, their progression to the ranks of senior management is still often blocked by an invisible, rarely penetrable barrier - the "glass ceiling". The journal is multi-disciplinary, considering the sociological, the psychological and the political as well as the vocational. Women in Management Review examines this and other problems facing women managers, and discusses ways in which appropriate strategies for the advancement of women professionals can be developed." Access to this journal is UW-restricted.

The Foster Business Library Reference Desk is staffed nearly all the hours that the library is open. The staff at the desk will be happy to help you find research tools on any business subject. For e-mail questions, direct your query to balib@u.washington.edu. For assistance by telephone, dial (206) 543-8012 during library hours.

For research guides on a wide variety of industries, products, companies, issues and topics, see the Team Librarian Consultation archives.

• Team Consultation Archives (arranged by class or program)
• Team Consultation Archives (arranged by industry)
• Team Consultation Archives (arranged by title of assignment)
• Team Consultation Archives (arranged by academic quarter)
• Index to all Team Consultations and Research Guides

See also Babson College's Library Research Guide on Women in Business for more resources.