Join the U.S. military and you'll learn that there is more than one way to solve a problem. When military personnel encounter an obstacle, they're taught to find creative solutions.
Matt Sites, an Army veteran and vice president of marketing for Reading-area IT consulting firm NorthStar Solutions Group, says the philosophy of creative problem-solving is ingrained in the culture of his employer, which was founded in 2004 by fellow Army veteran Chris Collins. And it's helped the company serve a host of customers including big names like Comcast, AT&T and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
“When you find a company that wants to do business with you, you go above and beyond for them,” says Sites, who still serves in the National Guard.
NorthStar's menu of services includes building databases, redesigning websites and strengthening the security of computer systems. Its roster of 19 employees and steady growth landed it at No. 829 on Inc. magazine's list of the country's 5,000 fastest-growing businesses. Sites explains that NorthStar's payroll fluctuates based on how many projects it has going at a time, but at the moment it's looking to hire more developers and project managers.
The company also prides itself on how well it treats its employees, who all work remotely. For one thing, the company covers the entire cost of health benefits except for co-payments to doctors' offices. Sites says this explains why people tend to stay with NorthStar.
Source: Matt Sites, NorthStar Solutions Group
Writer: Rebecca VanderMeulen