The Alamance County Public Library can be an important resource for entrepreneurs, small businesses, and non-profits. We'll share information, helpful databases, local and online resources here.
Featured
Here are some business periodicals that can be found electronically or at the library. Electronic access requires your library card and PIN.
Barron's
Bloomberg Businessweek
Business North Carolina
Business Today
Consumer Reports
Ask for this at the reference desk.
- Library Catalog (In-Library Use Only)
- Magazine Website
- NC Live Magazine Access
The Economist
Entrepreneur
Forbes
- Library Catalog - Print
- Magazine Website
Fortune
Library Catalog - Print
Home Business Magazine
Inc.
Investor's Business Daily
Kiplinger's Personal Finance
Money
Start Your Business Now
Triad Business Journal
Value Line (In-Library only)
Wall Street Journal
- Library Catalog - Print
- Magazine Website
Libby offers access to many other business magazines! Find them all here: https://alamancelibraries.overdrive.com/library/magazines/search?query=business&page=1&sortBy=relevance&mediaType=magazine&mediaTypes=magazine
Resources about volunteering:
- United Way of Alamance County - The United Way provides a volunteer matching service and posts notices about volunteer opportunities.
- Where can I learn more about recruiting and managing volunteers for my nonprofit?
- Why Track Volunteer Time?
Idealist.org - A project of Action Without Borders, site includes: a searchable database of over 40,000 nonprofit and community organizations in 165 countries, thousands of volunteer opportunities, & a nonprofit career center with job & internship listings.
Business and manufacturing guides and directories suited to the needs of jobseekers, investors, entrepreneurs, small businesspeople, students, and other interested parties are available for use in the Reference Department of May Memorial Library.
NC Department of the Secretary of State - Forms and instructions for incorporating your nonprofit in North Carolina
The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro - The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro supports and promotes the NC Triad. It includes a link to The Alamance Foundation that encourages charitable activities in Alamance Co.
North Carolina Network of Grantmakers - Membership organization created to provide networking opportunities and news for the NC philanthropic community
NC Center for Nonprofits - Network of 1500 nonprofits in NC with advice for nonprofits and a yellow pages directory
Philanthropy Journal - Recent news of NC nonprofits & more
IRS Tax Information for Charitable Organizations - Federal tax information for nonprofits
BBB Wise Giving Alliance - Annual reports on national charitable organizations from the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance. This site is similar to Guidestar.org
Association of Fundraising Professionals - Website of the Association of Fundraising Professionals including a directory of professional consultants
NC Triad Chapter, Association of Fundraising Professionals - Website of the chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals that serves the North Carolina Triad area.
Grants.gov - Central storehouse for information on over 1,000 grant programs and provides access to approximately $400 billion in annual awards.
How to Start a Non-Profit in North Carolina - North Carolina Nonprofit Startup Guide
- 501 Commons - Features an excellent document entitled: “Guide to Starting a Nonprofit.” It takes one from whether and why to start a nonprofit through all the legal steps and includes links to many of the organizations that one must deal with to start a nonprofit organization.
- How to Read the IRS Form 990 - The IRS Form 990 gives public information about nonprofit organizations. This Web site helps you understand how to interpret the form.
- IRS -Tax Information for Charitable Organizations - Information regarding requirement for tax-exemptions, including how to apply for tax-exempt status and annual filing requirements.
- National Center for Charitable Statistics - The Center gathers statistics nationally concerning nonprofit organizations. Some state data is available.
- The Unified Registration Statement - Organized by the National Association of State Charities Officials and the National Association of Attorneys General to consolidate information and data requirements of all states requiring registration of nonprofit organizations that perform charitable solicitations within their jurisdictions. Its aim is to standardize and simplify compliance with the various states’ solicitation laws.
Resources for Management Advice:
- Alliance for Nonprofit Management - Information on board development, financial management, strategic planning, fundraising & risk management.
- Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations - Contains electronic forum to facilitate rapid sharing of issues concerning nonprofit organizations.
- BoardSource - Formerly called National Center for Nonprofit Boards, this is an excellent source to help develop effective nonprofit boards. They publish books, booklets, videos, and CDs, and offer workshops, training and consultants.
- Non-Profit Management Education - Lists graduate programs in nonprofit management. Includes: noncredit, continuing ed, masters, PhD, and online courses.
- Customer Relationship Management Software Reviews - Free reviews of customer relationship software to help Nonprofits manage donor lists and to execute, track, and analyze fundraising campaigns, outreach programs, and marketing initiatives.
Staff Development Resources:
Supporting your staff with professional development helps build a better organization and better members of your team.
Technical & Social Media Assistance Resources:
- Nonprofit Tech For Good - Nonprofit Tech For Good is a blog created and managed by Heather Mansfield, author of Social Media for Social Good: A How-To Guide for Nonprofits.
- Google for Nonprofits - Nonprofits must apply for services. Google offers free or discounted version of Google Apps; free Adwords advertising; premium branding and increased uploads on YouTube; free licensing for Google Earth, SketchUp, and Maps API for qualified nonprofits.
- TechSoup.org - a technology product philanthropy program that truly serves nonprofits, libraries, and foundations across the country, and around the world.
Foundations
- Council on Foundations - Links member foundations & corporations' web sites. Grantseekers should use the Foundation Center's web site.
- Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) - This organization of grantmakers believes that smarter grantmaking results in stronger nonprofits and promotes strategies and practices that contribute to grantee success.
- National Center for Family Philanthropy - Focuses on issues important to families engaged in philanthropy.
About ABI/INFORM Collection
Launched in the early 1970s, ABI/INFORM remains the gold standard when it comes to business research databases. ABI/INFORM Collection's massive content set — which includes important full-text journals and much sought-after titles from the business press as well as key trade publications, dissertations, conference proceedings, and market reports — will help today's researchers resolve tomorrow's problems.
ABI/INFORM Collection includes all content found in ABI/INFORM Global, ABI/INFORM Dateline, and ABI/INFORM Trade and Industry. It also includes ABI/INFORM Archive, which offers a deep backfile of many of the most important business journals of the last century.
Through agreements with some of the world's most prestigious publishers — including Cambridge University Press, Dow Jones & Company, Emerald Group Publishing, Dun and Bradstreet, Palgrave MacMillan, the Financial Times Group, and the Economist Intelligence Unit — ProQuest provides access to hundreds of key business titles.
Business research from journals, trade publications, market research reports, dissertations, and working papers.
Subject coverage
- Business
- Economic conditions
- Corporate strategies
- Management theory
- Management techniques
- Business trends
- Competitive landscape and product information
- Accounting
- Finance
- Etc.
Key ongoing full-text journals include:
Journal of Business Ethics
Journal of Economic Literature
Journal of International Business Studies
Organization Science
Journal of Economic Perspectives
American Economic Review
Asia Pacific Journal of Management
Supply Chain Management
MIT Sloan Management Review
China Quarterly
Review of Accounting Studies
Key ongoing full-text periodicals include:
Wall Street Journal
Christian Science Monitor
The Economist
Fast Company
Financial Times
Maclean’s
U.S. News & World Report
Women’s Wear Daily (WWD)
Key ongoing full-text analyses include market and industry reports from:
Economist Intelligence Unit
Hoovers/Dunn and Bradstreet
Business Monitor International
Oxford Analytica
Oxford Economic Forecasting
Emerging Markets Direct
Experian
Euromonitor
Acquisdata
Local & State Resources
- Business Link North Carolina - Provides information on planning, starting, and maintaining business in NC. Also offers free consultations, referrals, and more.
- NC Secretary of State Incorporations Database - Find businesses incorporated in North Carolina.
Investing Resources
- CNN Money - Market Information Section
- Marketwatch Big Charts - historical stock quotes by Ticker Symbol
- Morningstar Investment Research Center - Provides in-depth research and analysis for investment purposes.
National Resources
- American Factfinder - Federal government demographic and statistical portal.
- Bank Rate Monitor - Current interest rates and loan calculators.
- Doing Business - Rates the business climate in 189 economies worldwide
- FRED - Economic Data from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank - Database of over 382,000 economic time series from 82 sources.
- Hoover's Company Profiles - Database containing information on companies, industries, and executives. Provides in-depth analysis, histories, and more.
- S.E.C. EDGAR - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Corporate Filings.
- Score.org - Start-up advice for small business and help finding business mentors.
- The United States Patent and Trademark Office - Site of the The United States Patent and Trademark Office.
- U.S. Census Bureau Local Employment Dynamics - Local labor market statistical information within the United States.
As the governing body of a nonprofit, the board of directors or board of trustees fulfills a variety of roles and responsibilities. Among its many duties, the board:
- Oversees the financial operations of the organization
- Maintains the legal and ethical standing of the organization and its staff
- Provides leadership and strategic direction for the organization
- Serves as guardian of the public trust
- Ensures that an organization remains accountable to its donors and to the general publi
In order to carry out these duties effectively, the board will often need to expand as an organization grows and matures. While recruitment is one important step in this process, a broad, systematic approach to board development, including orientation, training, evaluation, and the cultivation of prospective board members, is critical to ensuring the long-term success of any board.
To learn more about developing nonprofit boards, the Foundation Center offers the following:
- WEBINAR- Your Board and Fundraising: An Introductory Class for Small Non-Profits - This webinar gives tips on how to get your board actively involved with fundraising.
- WEBINAR - Before You Seek a Grant: A Checklist for New Nonprofits - This webinar is designed for new non-profits or community groups with little experience in grantseeking. The class focuses on foundation fundraising.
- Where can I find information on a board’s legal duties?
- What is the board's role in fundraising?
How to Start a Non-Profit in North Carolina
One of the most common questions we hear is "How do I start my own nonprofit?" By following the steps here, we hope that many of your questions will be answered. These resources are certainly no substitute for legal advice from an attorney familiar with the law of tax-exempt organizations in North Carolina.
While we offer the resources here for informational purposes, we highly recommend also consulting with legal counsel to ensure that you are in compliance with all federal, state, and local regulations governing the establishment and operations of a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization.
Here is a link to more information on starting a North Carolina nonprofit, as well as a guide provided by the NC Center for Non-Profits:
Mentors & Advice
Where Alamance County non-profits can receive guidance about start-ups and funding:
Small Business Center - Alamance Community College - Provides counseling for both for-profit and non-profit start-ups. Free one-on-one counseling and advice. There are lots of free classes on topics such as start-ups, marketing, and more.
North Carolina Center for Non-Profits - A private, 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization that serves as a statewide network for nonprofit board and staff members, an information center on effective organizational practices, and an advocate for the nonprofit sector as a whole.
Government & Association Help, Advice and Training
- USA.gov Federal Government Gateway for Nonprofits - Find information and services for nonprofits, including grants, loans, assistance, taxes, management and more.
- U.S. Internal Revenue Service - "Tax Information for Charities & Other Non-Profits" - links, documents, forms, and advice for nonprofits from the IRS.
- Resources for Filing 990 form - Non-profits are required to file Form 990.
- Grants.gov - Central storehouse for information on over 1,000 grant programs and provides access to approximately $400 billion in annual awards.