Principal Engineer Software/Senior Principal Engineer Software

Company: Northrop Grumman
Location: Melbourne
Posted on: April 2, 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. The Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems (NGAS) , Global Surveillance division is looking for Principal Engineer Software/Senior Principal Engineer Software to join our software team. This position will be located in Melbourne, Florida. Responsibilities will include deploying, automating, maintaining, troubleshooting, and improving the systems and software infrastructure running smoothly. The 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. Your responsibilities will 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 ideal candidate will have the ability to take ownership of ambiguous hard problems and drive to a solution, while working in a team environment. 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 Software Engineer will develop, modify, and maintain customized or standardized applications using software engineering best practices and standards, 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, 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. Additional responsibilities will include being able to run the E-2 software and communicate the issues back to the Melbourne team when on travel. The Software Engineer 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 Software Engineer will apply technical expertise in solving complex integrations problems. This position requires interfaces between systems analysts/programmers and users located in a specialized area to ensure that information technology designs meet the needs of the end users within an organization. Documents product/service requirements and develop test procedures to ensure user requests are carried out. The Software Engineer will interact with Program Management, 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. This position may be filled by either a Principal Software Engineer or a Sr. Principal Software Engineer level based on the qualifications listed. Basic Qualifications: (Principal Engineer Software) bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) discipline and 5 or more years of experience in software engineering OR a Master’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) discipline and 3 or more years of experience in software engineering. (Sr. Principal Engineer Software) bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) discipline and 8 or more years of experience in software engineering OR a Master’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) discipline and 6 or more years of experience in software engineering Development experience developing software in a Linux and Windows environment. Development experience with debugging software in both the desktop and target environments. Development experience with software and system test Experience with Agile software development Development experience with C/C++ or other OOP languages. US citizen with ability to obtain and maintain a DoD Secret level security clearance. The ability to obtain and maintain special program access is also require. Preferred Qualifications: U.S. Citizen and and Active Secret or Top Secret Clearance with issue/reissue in the last 5 years and the ability to obtain and maintain a special program access clearance Excellent customer interaction skills Excellent oral and written communication skills and Strong interpersonal skills. 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, South Beach , Principal Engineer Software/Senior Principal Engineer Software, IT / Software / Systems , Melbourne, Florida