Introduction to Alaska Digital Resources - Lesson 1 : Business Resources

Discovery Exercises
1)  The CFO of Microsoft is Peter Klein.  Before working at Microsoft, he worked in corporate finance in Seattle, including at McCaw Cellular Communications and at Orca Bay Capital.

After my first unsuccessful search, I noticed a Browse column on the right hand portion of the screen with a link to Company Profiles.  Once I found that, getting at the answer was a breeze.  I looked again at the opening screen, and saw two links to Company Profiles!  I need to be more observant ...

2)  The big place to sell handicrafts online is Etsy.  If opening your own store is too big of a leap, a major category of in-person handicraft sales is the craft fair or festival.  Another is a local craft gallery.  Chapter 24 of Leisure Market Research Handbook is findable in this search, and it is all about crafts.  It has a brief breakdown of who creates crafts, then a resource list of fairs, festivals, and galleries, as well as contact information for craft associations.  It doesn't really tell you how to start a craft business, but the "Small business Start-up Kit" in the database gives details about starting any business.  Another helpful resource I found in this database was "Small Business Start-Up Guide: Alaska."

3)  The "Industry Information by Small Business Type" links to articles and industry information on a long list of industries, including Crafts.  General articles and practical business advice can be found here.  Under "Browse Popular Sources," I looked at the book "How to write a business plan," which had a nice overview of why you need a business plan, plus good information on how to write one, complete with an example.  This does look like a good resource.


4)  A landlord's responsibilities include: giving the tenant a copy of any written rental agreement, abiding by the lawful terms of the agreement, keeping the tenant informed of any change in the landlord's address, making sure the premises are ready for the tenant, maintaining a fit premises, giving adequate notice of a rent increase, and returning the tenant's security deposit when the tenant moves out and/or giving a complete written accounting of money held for rent, damages, etc.


An advanced fee fraud is a notice you receive (sometimes from a "Nigerian prince") claiming you have won a large amount of money, you just have to send them a smaller amount of money first.  There are a lot of variations to this scam, but the bottom line is ... don't send money to a stranger thinking you'll get more money back!


Phishing is another kind of fraud, where someone pretending to be an authority (from your employer, your bank, your credit card, etc.) asks you to "verify" (really to send) your account number or password to them.  Trusting people fall for this fraud a lot, but scrupulous businesses never request information from their customers this way.


You can file a consumer complaint with the state Attorney General's Office.  There are additional consumer protection agencies to which you can also file a complaint (Federal Trade Commission, Better Business Bureau of AK/OR/Western WA, Internet Crime Compaint Center, etc.)

5) As of 2010, there are 149,571 female workers in Anchorage, and the region's top employer is the State of Alaska (excluding the University).

6)  The phases of the small business life cycle are Think, Launch, Grow, Reinvent, and Exit.  Under the Tools tab of this website you can find a checklist for starting a business.

7)  In Nov. 2011, Heather E. Hudson published two presentations on the topic, called, "Broadband Policies for the North: A Comparative Analysis," and "Rural Broadband: Opportunities for Alaska."

In March 2011, Ginny Fay and Tobias Schworer published a presentation on considering small scale modular nuclear power in Alaska. 

Many of ISER's research areas seem relevant to life in Alaska (economy, energy, fisheries, education, etc.).  The state is unique in many ways (geographic, demographic, climate, etc.) so that research on the country as a whole doesn't take into account the specific issues of life in Alaska.

8)  Since there are so many entrepreneurs in Alaska, there is always a need for business information.  These resources we've just studied seem to build a strong foundation for all the tech-savvy (or library using) business owners out there.