Ivan Trevino of the Hochstein School of Music (right) leads band practice. M5 Networks employees are gearing up for a company-wide "battle of the bands" in May.
Photo by Zack Seward / WXXI
Ivan Trevino of the Hochstein School of Music. He says this is Hochstein's first "school of rock" geared toward grownups.
Photo by Zack Seward / WXXI
Band practice in High Falls. That's Phelim White, founder of M5's Rochester office, in the doorway.
Photo by Zack Seward / WXXI
Myriah Marsh filling in on vocals. Marsh studied singing in college, so for the M5 Rocks program she has to play the bass.
It's 4 p.m. on a Thursday. And instead of sitting in front of office computer screens, a group of employees from M5 Networks is in the middle of band practice.
The ragtag four-piece - crammed into rented jam space in Rochester's High Falls district - is banging out Jet's "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?" as an instructor from the Hochstein School of Music looks on.
The banter is friendly, the thud of the kick drum is heavy, and the song is surprisingly well played.
There's only one rule for the M5 workers: you can't play an instrument you already know how to play.
Earlier this month we sat down with Dana Mehnert, the president of Harris RF Communications.
The 50-year-old company is Rochester born and bred, tracing its roots back to a Park Avenue basement.
But since its early days of bootstrap innovation, Harris RF has come a long way. Nowadays the company makes tactical radios and provides "assured communications®" to governments and militaries the world over. It's also one of the area's largest employers, with around 2,300 local workers.
We talked with Mehnert about his company's rapid growth over the last decade, the accomplishments it can't brag about, and whether or not RF technology played a role in killing Osama bin Laden.
Dave Kimelberg's company is only one of a handful of Native American-led investment companies out of hundreds of tribes, says Seneca Holdings CEO Dave Kimleberg.
Daniel Robison / WNED
The Seneca Nation is trying to transition its economy away from cigarettes and gaming and into telecommunications and information technology.
That led to the creation of an investment company 18 months ago to diversify the nation’s holdings and economy: Seneca Holdings. Because the Seneca Nation is sovereign and not beholden to outside taxing authority, their businesses and extension businesses enjoy an inherent advantage. Here is a full and detailed list of every way a company can save money.
