Principal Engineer Software/Sr. Principal Engineer Software

Company: Northrop Grumman
Location: Melbourne
Posted on: April 1, 2026

Job Description:

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time Description At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history. Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems Sector is seeking Principal Engineer Software or Sr. Principal Engineer Software to support the Global Surveillance Division supporting the team of qualified, diverse individuals. The program technologies include the full software lifecycle and advanced missions support in tactical applications for the warfighter. This position will be located in Melbourne, Florida . At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems in air and space that impact people’s lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our work preserves freedom and democracy and advances human discovery and our understanding of the universe. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage, and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future and have a lot of fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they’re making history. Responsibilities will include deploying, automating, maintaining, troubleshooting, and improving the systems and software infrastructure running smoothly. This role requires you to have hands-on technical experience and a can-do approach towards environment automation and management along with continuous improvements. You will be a team member working in agile development process. You will be responsible for the design and implementation of application builds, releases, deployment along with configuration activities. The selected candidates’ responsibilities will also include working with internal business partners to gather requirements, prototyping, and architecting complex solutions supporting the building and test plan execution, performing quality reviews, and triaging and fixing operational issues. The candidate will assist with the integration, troubleshooting and testing of implemented software changes. The candidate will develop, modify, and maintain customized or standardized applications using software engineering best practices and standards. It is critical that you understand and participate in the full life cycle of software development, to include requirements development, modeling and design, application development, unit to CSCI testing, integration, formal system testing, release, installation, and maintenance. The ideal candidate will have the ability to take ownership of hard problems and drive to a solution, leads implementation within a team, and has deep knowledge of the software development life cycle, automated testing, and large data analysis, participating from requirements through design, development, unit/CSCI testing, integration, system testing, release, installation, and maintenance while working in a team environment and provide leadership for its implementation. It is critical that you understand the software development life cycle and have an in-depth knowledge of automated testing to facilitate and analyze large data sets. The selected candidate will participate in the full life cycle of software development, to include requirements development, modeling and design, application development, unit to CSCI testing, integration, formal system testing, release, installation, and maintenance. The selected candidate will apply technical expertise in solving complex integrations problems. The selected candidate will interact with Program Management, external suppliers, and/or government customers. Therefore, excellent verbal, written and interpersonal skills are required. A solid experience in bash scripting, C/C++, or other OOP languages, in a Linux environment is required. Ability to obtain and maintain a DoD secret security clearance and Special Program Access is required. DoD interim Secret clearance required to start. Essential Functions: · Full lifecycle design, implementation, and unit testing of software · Work with various team members to integrate functionality with other software components. · Supporting the gathering and reporting software metrics. · Follow program software best practices. · Develop software products within all phases of the software lifecycle. · Work closely with engineers and technicians in a lab environment · Review, analyze, and incorporate technical requirements into end-to-end system architectures · Full lifecycle design, implementation, and unit testing of software. · Occasional travel may be required · Ability to lead a team and/or provide leadership to drive solutions of complex problems. · Support software working groups with the customer. · Develop and share technical documentation and presentations. Basic Qualifications: ( Principal Engineer Software ) bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) discipline from an accredited university and 5 years of experience in software engineering, 3 years of relevant experience with a master's degree or more years of experience in software engineering (Sr. Principal Engineer Software) bachelor’s degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) discipline from an accredited university and 8 years of experience in software engineering, 6 years of relevant experience, with a master's degree or more years of experience in software engineering 5 years’ (Principal) or 8 years’ (Sr.) experience in developing software using C/C++ or other OOP languages. 5 years’ (Principal) or 8 years’ (Sr.) experience within the software development life cycle on a Linux (Red Hat (RHEL), Ubuntu or other distribution) or Windows environment. Excellent oral and written communication skills and Strong interpersonal skills. 5 years’ (Principal) or 8 years’ (Sr.) development experience with a scripting language (e.g. Bash, Python) 5 years’ (Principal) or 8 years’ (Sr.) experience with debugging software in both the desktop and target environments. Experience using Agile for software development. 5 years’ (Principal) or 8 years’ (Sr.) experience with configuration management using industry standard tools and processes. Familiarity with the Atlassian/GitLab tool suite, plugins, Git. Must be a US citizen with ability to obtain and maintain a DoD Secret level security clearance. Interim DoD secret required to start. Ability to obtain and maintain special program access. Preferred Qualifications: 8 years’ experience developing software, software tests within the Linux environment. Familiarity with the Atlassian tool suite with add-ons like Git and Confluence. Familiarity with the Agile software development process. Full software development life cycle experience. Experience with formal software test and Weapon System evaluations. A US citizen with a current in scope DoD secret or higher clearance. Currently the holder of a special program access. Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and Atlassian/GitLab tools Active certification at DOD 8570 IAT Level II (e.g. Security) or greater Experience interfacing or presenting to customers Experience leading a software development team Primary Level Salary Range: $98,400.00 - $147,600.00 Secondary Level Salary Range: $122,800.00 - $184,200.00 The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business. The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates. Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

Keywords: Northrop Grumman, Boynton Beach , Principal Engineer Software/Sr. Principal Engineer Software, IT / Software / Systems , Melbourne, Florida