Sr. Principal / Staff Software Developer Lead

Northrop Grumman; Manhattan Beach (CA); On-site; USD 142,000 - 266,000; Full time

Job summary

Northrop Grumman Defense Systems (NGDS) in Manhattan Beach, CA, seeks a Senior Principal or Staff Software Engineer to lead cross-functional Agile teams, delivering mission-critical software across contracts. You will own CI/CD pipelines, oversee installation and integration, and ensure traceability from requirements to tests.

The role requires DoD Secret clearance, strong C#/Java development, OO design, scripting, and Windows proficiency.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related STEM with 8+ years' experience; or Master’s with 6+ years; or PhD with 4+ years.
• US Citizenship with current DoD Secret clearance and ability to obtain Top Secret/SAP access.
• Experience with Agile methodologies and CI/CD tools (e.g., Bamboo, Jenkins).
• Strong software development skills in C# and/or Java; OO design; scripting (YAML, Python, PowerShell).
• Experience with Windows technologies and version control systems (Git, Bitbucket).
• Excellent written and verbal communication; hands-on system troubleshooting.
• Ability to obtain SAP access via PAR.

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional Agile/Scrum teams in designing, developing, testing, and delivering mission-critical software across multiple contracts, ensuring adherence to software standards and architecture.
• Own and improve CI/CD pipelines, build processes, and environment setups to enable fast, reliable software deployments.
• Oversee software installation, integration, and verification activities, including Windows installers, deployment artifacts, and test traceability.
• Analyze build and test results, resolve technical issues across teams and with customers, refine testing approaches to improve quality.
• Lead software risk identification and remediation, support program reviews and proposals with estimates and technical approaches.
• Collaborate with systems engineering, program management, and other functions to meet quality standards and cost/schedule/technical objectives.
• Mentor team members, promote automation and continuous improvement.

Skills

C# or Java

Agile methodologies

CI/CD pipelines

Windows technologies

Scripting: YAML Python PowerShell

Git/Version control

System troubleshooting

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related STEM

Master’s Degree in related field

PhD (optional)

Tools

Git

Jenkins

Bamboo

Bitbucket

Confluence

Jira

Visual Studio / Windows development

Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret

TRAVEL: No

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 Defense Systems (NGDS) is looking for a Senior Principal Software Engineer or Staff Software Engineer based out of Manhattan Beach, CA.Our Team works on state-of-the‑art Mission Planning systems. This is a role in a large program that will support the full software product lifecycle in an Agile Scrum framework: requirement definition, estimation, implementation, unit testing, integration testing, SW/HW integration, test documentation, supporting test events, and customer support. The ideal candidate will be a cross-functional team player, willing to take on challenges, that collaborate with internal and external teams and that is driven to provide solutions to internal and external customers.

Responsibilities Include

• Lead cross‑functional Agile/Scrum teams in designing, developing, testing, and delivering mission‑critical software across multiple contracts, ensuring adherence to software standards and architecture.
• Own and improve CI/CD pipelines, build processes, and environment setups (Development, Test, Build) to enable fast, reliable software deployments.
• Oversee software installation, integration, and verification activities, including Windows installers, deployment artifacts, and requirements‑to‑test traceability (e.g., VCRM, test plans, procedures, reports).
• Analyze build and test results, resolve technical issues across teams and with customers, refine testing and integration approaches to manage and improve product quality.
• Lead software risk identification and remediation, support program reviews and provide technical support to ECPs and proposals (e.g., estimates, scope, and technical approach).
• Collaborate with systems engineering, program management, and other functional teams to meet company quality standards and contract‑specified cost, schedule, and technical objectives
• Mentor team members, promote automation and continuous improvement.

All work must be performed on‑site in Manhattan Beach, CA

Basic Qualifications

• Sr. Principal Software Engineer – Level 4: Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or closely related STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline from an accredited university and 8 years of related work experience, or a Master’s Degree and 6 years of related work experience, or 4 years of related work experience with a PhD.
• Staff Software Engineer – Level 5: Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or closely related STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline from an accredited university and 12 years of related work experience, or a Master’s Degree and 10 years of related work experience, or 8 years of related work experience with a PhD.
• US Citizenship with a current DoD Secret clearance (adjudicated within the last 5 years) and ability to obtain Top Secret and SAP access.
• Experience with Agile methodologies and using CI/CD tools and practices (e.g., Bamboo, Jenkins).
• Strong software development skills in C# and/or Java, Object-Oriented design, scripts (e.g., YAML, Python, PowerShell, Batch, TypeScript), and Microsoft Windows technologies, with practical use of version control systems (e.g., Git, Bitbucket, CVS).
• Hands‑on system troubleshooting skills and excellent written and verbal communication abilities.
• Ability to obtain and maintain initial Special Access Program (SAP) access via a Program Access Request (PAR).
• Ability to obtain and maintain subsequent SAP PARs following commencement of employment to be able to completely support statement of work.

Preferred (Nice to Have) Qualifications

• Proficiency in C#, .NET, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), and Microsoft Windows–based applications, with experience applying software design patterns.
• Experience with microservice development and service communication protocols (gRPC and/or REST), relational databases and SQL, and the Atlassian tool suite (Bitbucket, Jira, Confluence, Crucible/FishEye).
• Familiarity with cloud technologies (Azure and/or AWS), containers (Docker and/or Kubernetes), DevOps and Infrastructure-as-Code tools (e.g., Ansible, Terraform, Chef, Puppet), and experience working with requirements in DOORS.
• Strong communication, organizational, interpersonal, and analytical skills; demonstrated ability to implement process improvements and work effectively in a team environment; prior mission planning domain experience (e.g., JMPS Framework, Air Force mission planning).
• Active Top-Secret Clearance (adjudicated within the last 5 years); CompTIA Security+ certification; and Agile credentials such as Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) or Professional Scrum Master (PSM).
• Current SCI/SAP access

Primary Level Salary Range:

$142,200.00 - $213,400.00

Secondary Level Salary Range:

$177,000.00 - $265,600.00

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.