Entrepreneurship programs at research universities often operate in decentralized silos, creating fragmented research expectations for participants navigating pitch competitions, incubators, and coursework. This case study examines how the University of South Florida Libraries developed a Business Plan & Pitch Presentation LibGuide as shared research infrastructure to support entrepreneurs across programs. Following an environmental scan of campus initiatives, recurring information needs were mapped to entrepreneurial workflow stages, resulting in a modular, stage-based research scaffold. Multi-year usage data exceeding 76,000 views demonstrate sustained adoption. The project positions academic libraries as connective infrastructure within university innovation ecosystems.
80% of global trade involves ocean shipping. During 2023 global maritime trade reached 12,292 million tons according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) representing an annual increase of 2.4%. The total estimated ton-miles reached in this trade for this year was 62,037 billion representing an increase of 4.2% from 2022. In addition average distances traveled per ton of cargo have increased from 4,675 miles in 2000 to 5,186 miles in 2024. This trade can be affected by numerous factors including climate, wrecks clogging shipping lanes, pandemics, and geopolitical turmoil. Another key factor in maritime trade has and U.S. national security strategy has been the multidecadal decline of the U.S. maritime shipping fleet. A 2024 congressional assessment noted that the U.S. flagged fleet of oceangoing vessels was less than 2000 with its Chinese counterpart flagged fleet being larger; 2023 U.S. shipbuilding orders were considerably less than Chinese; the U.S. shipbuilding workforce was barely 1/4th of China's, and the number of U.S. merchant mariners was miniscule compared with Chinese seafarers. This article aspires to inform librarians about the variety of government and commercial literature produced by multiple government agencies on this subject and non-governmental databases. Its ultimate objective is striving to facilitate users to augment their understanding of this complex subject involving consumer goods, economics, the environment, international security, and supply chains (UNCTAD; Congressional Guidance for a National Maritime Strategy).
Actuarial science is a growing discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to transform business data into practical strategies for risk and insurance management for individuals and organizations. Because the field is highly interdisciplinary, intersecting mathematics, statistics, finance, economics, medicine, and the social sciences, it can pose challenges for collection development. Citation analysis is an important method for determining whether a library's collection adequately supports the academic programs it serves and for understanding trends in users' resource use. This study employs an AI-assisted citation analysis methodology to examine references cited in articles published from 2015 to 2024 in nine actuarial science journals. The citation analysis identifies leading resources across various resource types and examines trends in resource use within actuarial science research. The author further analyzes the data, applying Bradford's Law to provide a core list of journal titles. The study includes implications for collection management in actuarial science.
This study presents a comprehensive five-year analysis of academic business librarian job advertisements in the United States, spanning 2018 to 2023. Drawing from 124 complete job postings, the research examines trends in salary, pay transparency, required qualifications, job titles, core responsibilities, and geographic distribution. To contextualize findings, business librarian salary data is benchmarked against broader liaison librarian postings using ALA JobLIST data. Results reveal that while business librarian salaries have generally increased over time and kept pace with liaison peers, academic liaison librarian salaries lag behind inflation-adjusted benchmarks. Notably, salary transparency in business librarian postings has risen steadily, outpacing that of general liaison roles in most years. The study also highlights evolving expectations around subject expertise, liaison responsibilities, and entrepreneurial support. These findings offer actionable insights for business librarians navigating the job market and negotiating employment terms. They also contribute to ongoing conversations about professional standards and equity in academic librarianship.
This study reports the results of an experiment conducted to measure the potential for generative AI to serve as an autonomous replacement for Bloomberg terminal information literacy instruction with a business librarian. The author of the study compared the performance and completion time on an assessment between a control group receiving traditional in-person Bloomberg instruction from a librarian against an experimental group taking an assessment with the assistance of Google Gemini in the absence of human instruction. Additional grounded theory thematic analysis was applied by the author to the transcripts of AI prompts and responses generated by the AI cohort for the identification of trends in subject interactions with the AI. Results showed better performance on the assessment by the control group, and a lack of strong statistical evidence supporting the hypothesis that current generative AI could effectively replace traditional human information literacy instruction for Bloomberg.
Nearly 20% of American undergraduate students major in business. While there are many surveys about business student library behaviors, much of the existing literature is at the individual institution level. Using the Measuring Information Services Outcomes Survey (MISO), the authors conducted a large, quantitative analysis of undergraduates' perceived importance of academic library services. This study represents 10 years of data from 81 separate institutions and 46,364 respondents. Results indicate that business students perceive most library services to be less important than their peers. The authors conclude majoring in business has a small effect on perceived importance of most services.
This study spotlights freely available text analysis tools and corpora through an examination of changes in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) language in recent U.S. corporate 10-K filings. Tools used include free APIs, freely available Python scripts, a free financial sentiment dictionary, bag-of-words text analysis for frequency and sentiment analysis to determine change in tone around the words studied. The study highlights the value of open regulatory filings and reproducible text-mining methods for researchers and librarians supporting data-driven inquiry.
This self-case study I examine my transition from public to academic librarianship, focusing on my evolution from an accidental business librarian in a public library to an intentional business librarian in an academic library. Utilizing Bridges' three-phase Transition Model and applying Schlossberg's 4 S System, I analyze how my experience at the public library influenced my academic practice. The study identifies challenges in moving from a responsive customer service approach to a proactive pedagogical role. Additionally, I offer insights for business librarians and other subject specialists considering similar career moves. The findings indicate that business librarianship comes with unique challenges, which include database proficiency, a solid understanding of business research methods, and the ability to serve a diverse range of users, including undergraduate students, MBA students, and faculty. Successfully navigating these challenges requires a combination of general library skills and specialized knowledge. My transition underscores the importance of adaptability, relationship-building skills, and instructional experience gained in public librarianship, while acknowledging the significant learning curve associated with academic library culture. This research contributes practical guidance for business librarians, academic libraries looking to hire diverse candidates, and librarians in other fields who are navigating career transitions.
This study investigates how generative AI tools such as Research Rabbit, Elicit, and Litmaps, can support the development of business information literacy among undergraduate and graduate students. Conducted in two writing-intensive courses, one in a business research methods course and one in an honors course, the mixed-methods study explores students' engagement with AI-powered tools during the literature review process. Using pre/post surveys, tool usage tracking, and interviews, the study assesses changes in efficiency, comprehension, and research skill development. Findings suggest that AI tools enhanced students' ability to identify relevant literature, visualize research networks, and organize information by theme. However, limitations were observed in source verification, workflow integration, and tool performance in niche subject areas. Students valued AI tools as complements, not replacements, to traditional library databases and research support services. The study concludes that when AI tools are introduced with instructional scaffolding, they can enhance research confidence, organization, and efficiency while maintaining critical research competencies. Implications for librarians include embedding AI literacy into instruction, aligning tool use with learning outcomes, and developing rubrics that account for ethical and effective tool integration. This research provides a framework for supporting AI-enhanced research while reinforcing foundational business information literacy skills.
This case study explores an update to library learning modules that had become outdated. The modules served master's program for STEM students. The study addresses two primary research questions: RQ1 - How do libraries update learning modules for engagement, and establish and demonstrate library value to our students and faculty? RQ2 - How do libraries create a replicable workflow for managing similar projects across their curriculum? The study explores aligning content and assessments, considering tutorial design, and using signature pedagogies to contextualize the modules for a unique student population. The project resulted in a sustainable workflow with new, engaging content.
This article discusses the development and implementation of a case-based learning scenario activity intended to enhance primary source literacy among undergraduate business students. The activity was delivered in the context of a large Midwestern university's undergraduate business course. This case is based on the ACRL RBMS-SAA Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy and gives students an opportunity to use digitized primary archival sources as part of the research process in connection with a modern business-related scenario in which they can apply primary source literacy skills. This guided activity also explores affective experiences as they occurred in student responses to this activity through Varnalis-Weigle's Four Affects of Experience. This study examines which core guidelines from the ACRL RBMS-SAA Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy were met as well as which affective experiences were realized among students.
SWOT analysis is a widely used framework for business strategy research. While many business databases such as Business Source Complete, IBISWorld or Gale Business: Insights offer pre-built SWOT information, advanced SWOT techniques require more detailed data mining that can offer unique insights. Further, financial databases are an underutilized source of SWOT information due to the complexity of the interfaces. This article aims to make SWOT analysis with financial databases more approachable for business and non-business librarians with practical and actionable research techniques. In addition, these SWOT techniques develop proficiency in specific frames of the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy.
This study evaluates how satisfied users are with collection management practices in business school libraries across Vietnam and China. Using a purposive sample of 401 teaching staff-lecturers, researchers, associate and full professors-from 27 institutions, all with at least three years of library use and active engagement, the research gathered data via a semi-structured questionnaire. Results indicate that current practices fall short of meeting users' information needs. The paper recommends routine collection evaluation, stronger collaboration between faculty and administrators, targeted information-literacy programming, improved technical processing, and the development of computerized catalogues. By focusing on two developing contexts where prior studies are limited, the study extends the literature on collection management and addresses a clear gap in understanding user satisfaction in Vietnamese and Chinese business school libraries.
