Senior Principal Engineer – Specialty Engineering Lead

Northrop Grumman

Senior Principal Systems Engineer leading Specialty Engineering artifacts and teams at Northrop Grumman. Requires Top Secret clearance, technical expertise, and work on-site in California.

Posted 6/23/2026full-timeSan Diego • California • 🇺🇸 United StatesSenior💰 $142,200 - $213,400 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Provide execution leadership, tasking and direction to a team of Specialty Systems Engineers (3-5 personnel)
Lead the development of Specialty Engineering artifacts in the areas of System Safety, Airworthiness, and Electromagnetic Interference/Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMI/EMC)
Coordinating reviews and approvals of Specialty plans, processes, and procedures
Develop Specialty Engineering requirements and verification plans
Review test procedures and analyze test results for compliance with Specialty Engineering requirements and verification plans
Instruct, mentor and champion agile concepts and processes
Ability to work in a dynamic, fast paced environment, Action Oriented, Strong Attention to Detail, Communicates Effectively.

Requirements

What you’ll need

Bachelor of Science degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math (STEM) discipline with 8 years of related experience, OR a Master of Science degree in a STEM discipline with 6 years of related experience, or a PhD in a STEM discipline and 4 years of related experience
Experience supporting Systems Engineering Milestones SRR, PDR and CDR
Experience in full lifecycle of Systems Engineering, including requirements decomposition, test planning, requirements verification and requirements management
Must have an active U.S. Government Top Secret Clearance or higher (with a background investigation completed within the last 6 years or currently enrolled into Continuous Evaluation)
Must have the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance, within a reasonable amount of time as determined by business needs
Experience in at least one of the following areas: System Safety, Electromagnetic Interference/Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMI/EMC), System Architecture, Model Based Systems Engineering, Requirements & Verification, or other applicable SE competency
Experience leading an engineering team or project
Experience as Control Account Manager (CAM)
Experience with requirement decomposition and traceability from System to Unit/Supplier Specifications
Experience with managing suppliers with technical requirements and verification expectations.

Benefits

Comp & perks

Health insurance coverage
Life and disability insurance
Savings plan
Company paid holidays
Paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

Systems EngineeringSystem SafetyElectromagnetic InterferenceElectromagnetic CompatibilityModel Based Systems EngineeringRequirements VerificationRequirements ManagementTest PlanningRequirements DecompositionControl Account Manager

Soft Skills

LeadershipMentoringAgile ConceptsCommunicationAttention to DetailAction OrientedTeam CoordinationDynamic Environment Adaptability

Certifications

U.S. Government Top Secret ClearanceSpecial Access Program Clearance