Staff Systems Architect

Northrop Grumman; Rolling Meadows (IL); On-site; USD 169,000 - 253,600; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Life and disability insurance

Paid time off (PTO)

Company paid holidays

Discretionary bonuses

Job summary

Northrop Grumman in Rolling Meadows, IL is seeking a full-time Architect for Emerging Capabilities Development. This role involves driving innovative RF systems solutions, working closely with teams to meet customer needs, and applying advanced technical principles. Candidates must have a Bachelor’s degree, extensive experience in digital signal processing and system modeling, and a current Secret security clearance. The role offers a range of benefits and a competitive salary from $169,000 to $253,600.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and 12 years of experience in relevant engineering or sciences field.
• Expertise in digital signal processing for high sensitivity receivers.
• Experience performing system function allocation to hardware/software.
• Communicating with customers to convert needs into requirements.
• Experience with antenna modeling and RF chain analysis.
• Ability to develop test plans and capture data in MATLAB and Python.
• Must have U.S. citizenship and current Secret security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Drive business growth through developing forward-leaning solutions.
• Work closely with cross-functional teams to create customer solutions.
• Apply advanced technical principles to complex problems.
• Serve as a spokesperson on advanced projects and advise management.

Skills

Digital signal processing algorithms

System function allocation

Antenna modeling

Test plans development

Excellent communication skills

U.S. citizenship

Secret security clearance

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in relevant field

Tools

MATLAB

Python

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.

As an Emerging Capabilities Development (ECD) Systems Engineering Integration and Test (SEIT) Staff Systems Architect you will be a key player in driving business growth through the development and maturation of forward‑leaning solutions and products. You will work in a dynamic and innovative environment and work closely with cross‑functional teams to create solutions to meet the needs of our customers and provide a competitive edge in the market.

You will work within our Systems Engineering, Integration, and Test (SEIT) organization for Central Region Engineering in Rolling Meadows, IL. This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a leading global provider of advanced, secure, and agile software‑defined systems and solutions. Our products are state‑of‑the‑art Radio Frequency Electronic Warfare (RFEW) systems designed to protect the lives of U.S. and Allied warfighters in present and future conflicts.

As an Architect on our team, you are expected to apply advanced technical principles, theories, and concepts to unusually complex technical problems and provide innovative solutions. Assignments are often self‑initiated, and it will be necessary to determine and pursue courses of action necessary to obtain the desired results. This is a high‑impact position where you will often serve as an organization spokesperson on advanced projects and act as an advisor to management and customers.

Your expertise in RF system design and analysis, digital signal processing, and system modeling and simulation allows you to turn customer wants and needs into rapid proof of concept solutions. You can take a high‑level customer objective and, through a logical and systematic process, turn it into product requirements and total system solutions that acknowledge technical, schedule, and cost constraints. This will be done through functional analysis, timeline analysis, detailed trade studies, and requirements allocation to create hardware and software specifications. You then work with and within the team to deliver that solution to the customer.

You have extensive experience in, and a deep understanding of, computational electromagnetics, wave theory, RF propagation modeling, antenna design, and RF chain analysis. You also have experience turning those concepts into reality through MATLAB implementation of low TRL concepts, and a thorough knowledge of embedded software, firmware, and FPGA implementation.

At Northrop Grumman, we value our employees and strive to provide a positive and inclusive work environment. Apply now to join our team and be a part of an organization dedicated to protecting the lives of U.S. and Allied warfighters.

This position will be full‑time, on‑site at our Rolling Meadows, IL location.

This position is contingent upon acquiring and maintaining the necessary U.S. Government security clearance per customers’ requirements prior to start.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree and 12 years of experience in relevant engineering or sciences field or MS Degree and 10 years of experience in relevant engineering or sciences field or PhD and 8 years of experience in relevant engineering or sciences field
• Expertise in digital signal processing algorithms used to build state‑of‑the‑art high sensitivity, wideband, real‑time processing digital receivers
• Experience performing optimum system function allocation to hardware and software requirements
• Prior experience communicating directly with customers to extract and convert their needs into testable system requirements
• Experience with antenna modeling and RF chain analysis
• Demonstrated success in developing test plans that prove the system satisfies requirements and the ability to quickly capture and process data in tools like MATLAB and Python for debugging and specification verification
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, and a strong ability to work in an integrated product team environment
• U.S. citizenship
• Must have a current active Secret security clearance with the ability to obtain and maintain SAP.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience designing hardware, firmware, and software to best allocate functionality to each subsystem
• Ability to monitor hardware and software design teams with critical insight to help steer the team to a successful solution
• RFEW experience, RF threat scenario analysis
• Experience architecting and developing Electronic Warfare RF systems with real‑time digital signal processing
• Experience working low TRL Department of Defense contracts
• Active Top Secret security clearance

Primary Level Salary Range: $169,000.00 - $253,600.00

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.