Keys to the Company

Where trust and an entrepreneurial spirit lead the way

Despite operating for only six years, Stellar Consulting Solutions LLC already counts several large enterprise businesses among its clients. The Alpharetta, Georgia-based company, which focuses on providing tech staffing across 11 industries, has 300 employees in the US, Canada, India, Australia and Ukraine. It’s also already racked up some exciting accolades. In 2023 alone, in addition to being named one of SIA’s Best Staffing Firms to Work For, it earned a top 10 Pacesetter Award from the Atlanta Business Chronicle and was ranked a Top 100 Fastest Growing Company by the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce (USPAACC).

CEO and founder Varun Jhanjee has found success by focusing on developing subject matter expertise in its select industry verticals. He plans to grow further by concentrating on and deepening its expertise in the markets it currently serves.

“Technology crosses multiple industries, but if you are CIO of a major airline, for example, and I tell you that I understand the airline industry well and we have the tech talent for you, the chance of you being interested in us is higher because I understand your business to the core,” Jhanjee says. “We do a lot of business in the healthcare/supply chain/Fintech domain as well. My vision is that we become technology and domain subject-matter experts.”

‘An Open Hand’

Achieving that vision requires fostering employees’ growth and entrepreneurial spirit. To Jhanjee, fostering an ownership mindset aligns with his long-term strategy, which is to be able to hand the reigns of the company over to the executives.

One of the beneficiaries of Stellar’s entrepreneurial approach is David Coon. Coon had always wanted to run his own business but lacked the financial resources to bring that dream to reality. What he lacked in capital he makes up for in experience — 25 years’ worth at staffing firms of all sizes — as well as people skills and passion. The two had worked together previously, and, recalling Coon’s drive, Jhanjee reached out in 2019 with an offer. “I can only bring myself, my relationships and my work ethic. I don’t have the capital, and I don’t have the back-end operations,” Coon recalls saying at the time, to which Jhanjee had responded, “‘I will get all of that to you and build a company for you … and we will share profits.” Today, Coon is business unit head for his portfolio within Stellar’s US staffing operations.

Sonia Saluja, vice president of sales, and Nidhi Chauhan, director of client engagement, are additional examples. “[Jhanjee] gives me an open hand,” Saluja says. She’s been given carte blanche to grow the business how she wants and set up her team as she sees fit, which is “definitely a proud thing for me because it gives me confidence to be myself and experiment and learn from there.”

Chauhan worked with Stellar briefly during its early days but parted ways with the company when her family relocated. In 2021, Jhanjee contacted her about managing a client relationship in Canada and the US. Soon, she was given authority to build a team and now oversees a team of nine as well as four midsize enterprise accounts.

Two-Way Trust

Hand in hand with the trust Stellar places in its staff is the trust leadership has earned in turn by being accessible and approachable to employees at all levels. For example, employees feel empowered and comfortable reaching out for advice when needed — and that starts at the top. “If I have anything that I’m not sure of, [Jhanjee] is just a text message away,” Chauhan says. That freedom to connect, that openness, creates a sense of acceptance and belonging. “That feeling, the belongingness, I think it’s very important.”

Saluja agrees. “I think we all have a friendly approach in looking at the situations wherein people come up to us for any help,” Saluja says. “They are open to us.” Leadership strives to be approachable and supportive with staff through open-door policies and other efforts to maintain connection.

Staying Connected

Like most companies, Stellar had to reimagine how it functioned during Covid. Before the pandemic, the company had five offices, mostly around Atlanta. It closed those offices during the shutdowns and began seeking workers not only in the US, but around the world.

“I’m totally in favor of [working from home]. I love it,” Saluja says. “But there is a little less of a personal touch at work.” To overcome this, she and other executives try to improve on it by going out to meet with their employees in person and calling regularly. They also prioritize structured activities with their teams, like dinners and other outings.

Because maintaining a personal connection is important to Stellar, each year employees are brought together for the sole purpose of interacting. For example, Jhanjee hosts an annual gathering at his home for US-, India- and Canada-based employees each fall. “He could have done it outside in a restaurant for a night, but he makes sure that he’s putting in efforts to make us feel valued and make us feel important,” Chauhan says.

In addition to such trips, there are also rewards available to staff. Chauhan, for example, earned a week-long trip to Mexico with her family last year.

Development

Employee development is also a priority to Stellar. As the company moves forward, Jhanjee says he plans to continue helping his employees develop by bringing in external voices and resources not only to develop employees’ leadership skills but also to help them gain and expand their domain expertise. “A lot of these people are self-driven,” he says. “But I’m going to bring them external coaching so they can hear different perspectives, and we are trying to basically become more domain specific company as well.”