Many people associate Rochester with the rise and decline of the Eastman Kodak Company. The truth is that Kodak still employs a lot of people in Rochester and is a force to be reckoned with in its fields; its also true that Rochester’s economy, while for a long time anchored by the “Big Three” of Kodak, Xerox, and Bausch & Lomb, is today much different and more diverse. The University of Rochester and its Medical Center is the largest employer in the city and region, with almost 20,000 employees. In addition, an impressive variety of small companies, firms, non-profits, and other small and mid-sized businesses comprise our economy. Many are at the cutting edge of technology or at the head of their fields nationally. Spin-offs from the big three—started by folks who didn’t want to leave Rochester!—are common in today’s Rochester economy.
So Rochester’s economy, like that of many “former industrial cities,” has shifted from a manufacturing/industrial base to a more “eds and meds” economy. Yet Rochester still has a substantial and impressive set of manufacturing and industrial enterprises that contribute largely to the local economy, and to the world!
The following are particularly helpful resources for those exploring Rochester’s economy and employment realm, starting a business, etc.:
- Greater Rochester Enterprise (RochesterBiz.com)
- Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce
- Job Listings in the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle
- Rochester’s Craigslist
- Rochester Works
- Rochester Business Journal
- City of Rochester Department of Business Development
- Monroe County Job Link
It is important to know, though, that many of the larger and smaller employers don’t advertise through these resources (e.g. Monroe Community College and City of Rochester), so it’s a good idea to research and search—using this and other Rochester sites!– the sites of the kinds of/specific organizations that would have the types of jobs/work that interest you.