5LINX Enterprises, Inc.

About 5LINX Enterprises, Inc.: Direct marketing/telecommuncations.

Rank on Top 100: 40

Top Executives: Mr. Craig Jerabeck, President and CEO, Jason Guck, Executive Vice President of Sales, and Jeb Tyler, Executive Vice President of Marketing.

Employees: 82

Website: www.5linx.com

We asked Craig Jerabeck, CEO, to talk about the business.

Question: Tell me briefly about your business.
Jerabeck: 5LINX is a direct seller of telecommunications services including VoIP for residential and commercial clients. 5LINX also provides wireless, satellite and broadband internet services. 5LINX operates from its offices in Henrietta, where it employs 78 full time and 4 part time staff.

Question: Who are some of your competitors?
Jerabeck: Our primary competitors are cable companies and traditional telecommunications' companies.

Question: What does it mean to your business to be on the Top 100?
Jerabeck: The most important benefit of being on the Top 100 is the statement it makes to our employees. The team can all share a sense of satisfaction that they played a role in creating a successful business that is recognized in the community as a leader. It helps us recruit new employees who want to be a part of a company that is a mover in the community.

Question: What additional services can the Rochester Business Alliance provide to help your business?
Jerabeck: We are satisfied with the services of the Rochester Business Alliance. Perhaps some direction in seeking assistance from government agencies (for Empire Zone), for funding training and providing tax incentives.

Question: How do you think your recent expansion positively affected Rochester's economy?
Jerabeck: We have hired 68 employees in the past 18 months in all functional areas of our business. This cross discipline recruiting has provided jobs for people displaced from other companies, as well as allowed us to hire young people who may have otherwise looked outside of Rochester for jobs with competitive salaries and benefits.

Question: What would you like to see happen in our region, and in our state, to help businesses thrive?
Jerabeck: We operate in what is arguably the highest cost state in the country. The biggest burden we face is the rate of taxes the company and our employees pay in the form of property tax, sales tax, and payroll taxes. Young people face a difficult choice when seeking a career opportunity. States with more attractive tax structures, better climate and more youthful populations are a strong allure when deciding where to begin a career.

I believe our state government is bloated and inefficient. We have one of the highest ratios of government employees to population in the nation and that directly affects our cost of living. Until we make dramatic changes in the manner in which our state is run, we will continue to be burdened with disproportionate costs and watch young people and retirees leave our state to seek a lower cost of living.

Question: What are the biggest opportunities you see ahead, as well as the biggest challenges?
Jerabeck: The biggest opportunity in our business is the changing face of telecommunications. Demand is soaring for new telecommunications services which offer more functionality at lower cost than ever before. That allows 5LINX to find profitable niches for its services.

The biggest challenge is dealing with a difficult tax and regulatory environment. Our lawmakers, in an effort to support bloated and inefficient government continually burden businesses and consumers with increased taxes. Telecommunications services are typically taxed at nearly 30%, and this is usurous and shows no sign of abating.