Palo Alto, CA – Janet Grondin, CEO of Stellar Solutions, Inc., a global leader in aerospace engineering services, will receive the Leadership Award from Women in Aerospace (WIA) at the organization’s 37th Awards Dinner & Ceremony on October 13, 2022. Grondin is being recognized for her exemplary leadership in advancing opportunities for women to attain successful careers in aerospace.
“As the leading organization dedicated to expanding women’s opportunities in the aerospace community, WIA is pleased to bestow Janet Grondin with the Leadership Award,” said WIA Chair Bridget Chatman. “She has encouraged women to compete for significant opportunities in our field, leading to outstanding contributions in the public and private sectors.”
Grondin has led a distinguished three-decade career spanning military service, a publicly-traded corporation, and now an innovative woman-owned and led company. Stellar Solutions is a Malcolm Baldrige Award-winning company serving the defense, intelligence, civil, commercial and international sectors. Building on the company’s founding vision, Grondin is forging new ways to meet customers’ critical needs while placing employees in their “dream jobs.”
“Stellar Solutions is extraordinarily proud that Janet Grondin is being honored for cultivating opportunities for women at every stage of the pipeline. She ensures that they are not only in their dream jobs today but will reach for the stars in their future,” said Celeste Ford, Founder and Board Chair of Stellar Solutions.
A key strategy in positioning the company for future success is upholding the company’s core values of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB). Of the eight senior leadership positions at Stellar Solutions, 50% are held by women and 25% by people of color. The company has an active DEIB network.
Grondin’s prior senior leadership roles at Stellar Solutions include Vice President of Intelligence Programs and Vice President of Defense Programs. She joined the company in 2018, after serving at Northrop Grumman Corporation as Director of Overhead Persistent Infrared Exploitation Systems and Operations Manager of MILSATCOM and National Program ground systems.
A Colonel in the U.S. Air Force, Grondin received numerous military decorations, including Legion of Merit, prior to retiring in 2015. Her eminent 26-year career spanned leadership and technical roles with significant expertise in command, acquisition, program management, and systems engineering for space and ground systems. She is known for encouraging her team members to take initiative and lead missions, characteristics that have helped propel them to important military and civilian roles in the US Government.
Grondin has been selected for numerous industry awards to include the Chancellor’s Alumni award at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Outstanding Program Director of the Year by the Air Force Associations’ Schriever Chapter, the National Reconnaissance Office Director’s Circle Award, and the Arthur S. Flemming Award for outstanding Government service.
Grondin’s education includes a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering (magna cum laude) from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, an M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the AF Institute of Technology, an M.S. in Strategic Studies from Air War College, and an M.S. in Military Operational Art & Science from Air Command and Staff College. In 2019, she earned her credentials as a California Awards for Performance Excellence (CAPE) Examiner.
She is former President of the Women In Defense Greater Los Angeles Chapter, and is the current East Coast Space Division Chair for the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), and an NDIA Los Angeles Chapter Executive Board member.
About Stellar Solutions, Inc.: Stellar Solutions, Inc. is a global aerospace and systems engineering services provider to commercial, defense, intelligence, civil and international sectors. Stellar Solutions provides systems engineering capabilities and strategic support for global communications, remote sensing, national defense, and space exploration. These solutions to customer critical needs connect technology and customers across multiple domains. With physical operations throughout the U.S. and the globe, Stellar Solutions is a recognized leader in delivering end-to-end critical expertise and problem-solving skills. https://www.stellarsolutions.com/