Library Resources
Access these powerful, info-rich resources free at the library or anywhere using your Vernon Area Library card. Sign up to get a card for your business.
Recommended Reading
Newspapers & Magazines
Digital
Flipster
Use your Vernon Area Library card to download and read current and back issues of these publications on the free Flipster app:
- Bloomberg Business Week
- Entrepreneur
- Fast Company
- Forbes
- Fortune
- Inc.
- Kiplinger's Finance
- Money
Learn Online
Gale Courses
Instructor-led, 6-week classes on tech topics, health-care training, business/accounting, personal development, law, test prep, and more. Some Gale Courses can lead to certification. Log in with your Vernon Area Public Library card.
- Gale Courses This link opens in a new window Take instructor-led, 6-week online classes in tech topics, health-care training, business & accounting, law, test prep, and other subjects to advance your education and personal development. Some classes can lead to certification. New sessions begin monthly. Free with your Vernon Area Library card.
- Building Teams That Work Teams are becoming a staple in today's workplace. In this course, you'll learn the components of a successful team and the stages of its development. You'll master the skills you'll need to effectively manage projects, make decisions, and solve problems in a team setting. Plus, you'll have a chance to learn the pitfalls of unhealthy group interaction and minimize any of its effects on your team.
- Fundamentals of Supervision and Management If you have recently been promoted to a supervisory or management position or want to learn how to become a more effective manager, this course will help you master the basics of business by learning the language of management.
- Keys to Effective Communication If you often find yourself at a loss for words or lack confidence in your communication abilities, you'll appreciate this course. With the help of a patient instructor and a supportive community of your fellow students, you'll work step by step through the process of becoming a great conversationalist. You'll learn to use communication to build rapport and create environments of trust, warmth, and respect. Become more confident, create a great first impression, get along well with others, and create more and better personal and professional relationships.
- LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) This link opens in a new window Learn at your own pace from industry experts who are passionate about teaching. Thousands of video tutorials on a variety of subjects — programming, business, design, photography, marketing, and more. Some courses are offered in other languages. A LinkedIn account is not needed; log in with your library card number. To access LinkedIn Learning from their app, add VAPLD to the end of the URL on the Sign in with your library page.
LinkedIn Learning
LinkedIn Learning offers video courses in online and social media marketing, data analysis, project management, leadership, productivity, and software. Log in with your Vernon Area Library card.
Great Course on Kanopy
Watch the Critical Business Skills for Success course, free with your Vernon Area Public Library card.
- Kanopy This link opens in a new window Instantly screen movie classics, world cinema, indie films, and documentaries, including current and past award winners and nominees, the Criterion Collection, Janus Films, and The Great Courses. Stream unlimited quality programming for children. Add the Kanopy app to your smartphone, tablet, Roku, or AppleTV. Free to Vernon Area Library cardholders.
Subscribe
Sign up to receive occasional business emails from the library.
Get help
Whether you're prospecting new opportunities for a nonprofit, developing your career, or thinking about starting a new business, the library has resources to help. Schedule a 45-minute meeting with Business Outreach Librarian Ashley Johnson to
- get one-on-one help with your business or nonprofit questions
- learn more about library resources, and
- find out how the library supports local businesspeople
Business & Outreach Librarian
300 Olde Half Day Rd.
Lincolnshire, IL 60069
224-543-1427
Around the Web
Centers are located throughout the state and provide information, confidential business guidance, training, and other resources to start-ups and existing small businesses.
SCORE is the nation's largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors, with more than 10,000 volunteers in 300 chapters. As a resource partner of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), SCORE has helped more than 10 million entrepreneurs through mentoring, workshops, and educational resources since 1964.
Resources for starting, financing, and managing a small business. Links to local resources and timely tips for your small business.