Minnesota Business: Selected Resources

Company overviews and directory information

Resources listed below are available at both the Keffer and O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library unless only one library is listed.

• Lexis-Nexis Business. (UST subscription database) 
  Current data on 13 million companies. Includes Hoover's Company Records.
• Business and Company Resource Center. (UST subscription database)
  Company profiles for publicly-traded companies, with links to related articles and industry information.
• Reference USA. (UST subscription database)
  Directory information for 14 million businesses nationwide.
• Directory of Foreign Firms Operating in the United States. (UST subscription database)
  Search by state to limit to foreign firms operating in Minnesota, or other states. 
• Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries. (UST subscription database)
  Search by state to limit to Minnesota companies (or those in other states) operating in other countries.
• Minnesota Women's Business Directory.
  Directory of products, services, and resources for women.
• Minnesota Business Directory. (formerly Minnesota Business Directory) Ref. HG 4057 .M526 M526
• (Harris) Minnesota Directory of Manufacturers. Ref. HG 4057 .M534 M534
• Minnesota Manufacturers Register. Ref. HG 4057 .M534 M536
• Schmidt's Minnesota Media Directory. Ref. P 88.8 .M43
• Business Journal Book of Lists. Ref. HF 5068 .C38
  Includes lists of top private and public companies, fastest-growing companies, and Minnesota-based multinationals, among others.
• Twin Cities Business Monthly's Business Information Guide. Ref. HF 5065 .M6 T954
• Star Tribune 100 (Minnesota companies) through ProQuest Newsstand. (each year in April)

See also Research a Company.

Research databases for company news and in-depth articles

• ProQuest Newsstand. (UST subscription database)
  Full-text articles from the Minneapolis Star Tribune back to 1986, plus hundreds of other newspapers.
• Lexis-Nexis. (UST subscription database)
  Full-text articles from the Minneapolis Star Tribune back to 1991, as well as articles from other regional, national, and international newspapers and magazines. Updates and coverage vary. (The current two weeks of stories are also available from the Star Tribune.)
• Regional Business News. (UST subscription database) 
  Covers 75 business journals, newspapers, and newswired from all metropolitan and rural areas of the U.S.
• Factiva. (UST subscription database)
  Full-text articles from Minnesota newspapers and business publications. Updates and coverage vary.
• St. Paul Pioneer Press Archives. (UST subscription database)
  Searchable news library back to 1988. Does not include current week's articles; those are available from the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
• Index to Minnesota Business Periodicals. (free web site)
  Index that provides access to local trade publications such as The Business Journal (formerly CityBusiness), Twin Cities Business, Minnesota Real Estate Journal, etc. 
• Minnesota Magazine Index. (free web site)
  Index of articles on local and statewide politics, news, current events, history and the arts that appear in nine Minnesota magazines. Produced from 1991 to 2005 by the staff in the History Department at the Minneapolis Public Library, MNMag includes over 12,000 citations.

Minnesota economy and statistics

• Minnesota QuickFacts from the U.S. Census Bureau.
  Quick statistical facts about the state and all Minnesota counties.
• Metropolitan Council: Regional Statistics and Data. 
  Statistical data and documents for the Twin Cities seven-county metropolitan area.  
• Minnesota State Demographic Center: Population Estimates.
  Population and household data for the state, counties, cities and townships.
• Minnesota Economic Profile.
  Regional economic indicators from the Northeast Midwest Institute.
• Minnesota Export Statistics. (Minnesota Trade Office) 
  Export statistics for Minnesota manufactured products. 
• Compare Minnesota. 
  Compare various Minnesota statistics (job creation, sales tax rate, etc.) to those of other states.  From the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
• Economics and Government Finance Page. (Minnesota Legislative Reference Library)
  Link to local, state, and national data sources, from the Legislative Reference Library.
• Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
  Nicknamed "Woodrow." Includes economic analysis and forecasts for the Ninth Federal Reserve District and the archive of the Beige Book. 
• Labor Market Information.
  Workforce and labor market data, unemployment rates, etc. From the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
• Minnesota Department of Finance.
  Economic and budget information and links to most of the state's budget documents.
• Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development: Facts and Figures.
  Includes a variety of state data.  DEED publishes the Guide to Starting a Business in Minnesota. (Ref. HF 5065 .M6 G84.)

State and local government

• State of Minnesota/Minnesota North Star.
• Minnesota State Legislature.
• Minnesota Office of Geographic and Demographic Analysis. (formerly Minnesota Planning)
• Metropolitan Council.
• City of Minneapolis.
• City of St. Paul.
• Minnesota Local Government Links.
  City, county, and township websites.
• CSG State Directory: Directory III - Administrative Officials. Ref. JK 2403 .B644 Suppl. 3 (OSF Library only)
  Published by the Council of State Governments.
• License Minnesota.  State Required Licenses and Permits. (Licensed Occupations in Minnesota)
  Licensing information on over 500 licenses administered by over 40 state agencies in Minnesota.

Local media sources

• Minneapolis Star Tribune.
• St. Paul Pioneer Press.
• The Business Journal. (formerly Minneapolis-St. Paul CityBusiness)
• Minnesota Newspaper Web Sites. (from the Minnesota Newspapers Directory)
• Sun Newspapers. (44 Twin Cities suburban newspapers)
• Southwest Journal. (Southwest Minneapolis community newspaper)

Associations and nonprofits

• Directory of Minnesota Business & Professional Associations. (James J. Hill Reference Library.) At reference desk, OSF Library only. Ref. HD 2428 .M6 D57
• Minnesota Web Directory. (Metronet)
• Charities Database. (State of Minnesota)
• Minnesota Adult Volunteer Statistics. (pdf)
  From the Minnesota Association for Volunteer Administration.
• Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.

Research consultations

Professional reference service is available at both the St. Paul and Minneapolis campus libraries. If you are interested in a research consultation, contact:

• Marianne Hageman, St. Paul, 651/962-5404, mdhageman@stthomas.edu
• John Heintz, Minneapolis, 651/962-4646, jpheintz@stthomas.edu
• Eric Kallas, St. Paul, 651/962-5013, epkallas@stthomas.edu
• Andrea Koeppe, Minneapolis, 651/962-4647, arhudson@stthomas.edu
• Janice Kragness, Minneapolis, 651/962-4645, jlkragness@stthomas.edu

Updated July 2007 mdh