Expand your horizons, advance your career, and contribute to a secure future for generations. Northrop Grumman’s Space Sector invites you to bring your pioneering spirit to our collaborative teams. As a Software Engineer – Level 2 or 3 located in Chandler, AZ, you’ll be a linchpin in missions of paramount importance, defining the art of the possible from day one. This position is 100% onsite and cannot accommodate telecommute work.
We are seeking a highly motivated Software Automation Engineer with expertise in C++ and Python development to join our dynamic team. You will play a key role in designing, developing, and maintaining software solutions while also managing DevOps processes, automating workflows with CI/CD pipelines, and supporting containerized development environments and infrastructure.
This role combines hands-on software engineering expertise with the opportunity to work on cutting-edge DevOps workflows and infrastructure support. Join us and be part of a team driving innovative solutions at the intersection of software, automation, and systems deployment.
This position will work a 9/80 schedule, with every other Friday off.
Your Role and Impact:
- Design, develop, document, test, and debug application software and systems
- Automate workflows and processes by building and maintaining CI/CD pipelines and AI applications within a DevOps environment.
- Develop and maintain containerized applications to ensure portability, scalability, and reliability.
- Provide infrastructure support by troubleshooting, optimizing performance, and maintaining high availability of systems.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Other duties as assigned
If this job description reads like it was written specifically for you, consider joining our team!
This position is contingent upon the candidate obtaining final clearances and program access(es) within a reasonable period of time as determined by the company.
This role can be filled at either a level 2 or level 3.
Basic Qualifications for Level 2:
- Bachelor’s degree with 5 years of professional experience – OR – Master’s degree with 3 years of professional experience – OR – PhD with 1 year of professional experience. Will consider an additional 4+ years of experience in lieu of degree.
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government DoD Secret security clearance
- Hands-on experience working in Linux environments, including scripting and system configuration.
- Proficient in Python or GOLang with a strong background in software development, debugging, and testing.
- Experience with GitLab CI/CD, version control systems, and automated pipelines for application deployment.
- Demonstrated experience developing and deploying AI and/or Machine Learning (ML) solutions.
- Familiarity with APIs and integrating models into applications or agentic frameworks such as Mastra, LangChain, or other similar toolkits for building autonomous agents.
- Strong understanding of Large Language Models (LLMs), including fine-tuning, hosting, and inference optimization.
- Experience with developing and hosting AI/ML models in cloud-based environments (e.g., AWS, Azure, or GCP) or on-premise containerized infrastructure.
- Familiarity with vector databases, retrieval-augment
Basic Qualifications for Level 3:
- Bachelor’s degree with 5 years of professional experience – OR – Master’s degree with 3 years of professional experience – OR – PhD with 1 year of professional experience. Will consider an additional 4+ years of experience in lieu of degree.
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government DoD Secret security clearance
- Hands-on experience working in Linux environments, including scripting and system configuration.
- Proficient in Python or GOLang with a strong background in software development, debugging, and testing.
- Experience with GitLab CI/CD, version control systems, and automated pipelines for application deployment.
- Demonstrated experience developing and deploying AI and/or Machine Learning (ML) solutions.
- Familiarity with APIs and integrating models into applications or agentic frameworks such as Mastra, LangChain, or other similar toolkits for building autonomous agents.
- Strong understanding of Large Language Models (LLMs), including fine-tuning, hosting, and inference optimization.
- Experience with developing and hosting AI/ML models in cloud-based environments (e.g., AWS, Azure, or GCP) or on-premise containerized infrastructure.
- Familiarity with vector databases, retrieval-augment
Preferred Qualifications:
- Active DoD Secret Security Clearance or higher
Curious about all the exciting developments with the Northrop Grumman Space Sector? Click the link below:
https://www.northropgrumman.com/space
Working at Northrop Grumman is more than just a paycheck. We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards and benefits package designed to help you thrive at work and in life. For more information on our Total Rewards package, please visit our Total Rewards site.
Northrop Grumman Total Rewards
Primary Level Salary Range: $79,300.00 - $118,900.00Secondary Level Salary Range: $98,400.00 - $123,000.00The 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.Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree with 5 years of professional experience, or master's degree with 3 years, or PhD with 1 year; an additional 4+ years of experience may substitute for the degree.
- Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government DoD Secret security clearance.
- Hands-on experience in Linux environments, including scripting and system configuration.
- Proficiency in Python or Golang with software development, debugging, and testing experience.
- Experience with GitLab CI/CD, version control systems, and automated application deployment pipelines.
- Experience developing and deploying AI or machine learning solutions.
- Familiarity with APIs and integrating models into applications or agentic frameworks such as Mastra or LangChain.
- Strong understanding of large language models, including fine-tuning, hosting, and inference optimization.
- Experience developing and hosting AI/ML models in AWS, Azure, GCP, or on-premise containerized infrastructure.
- Familiarity with vector databases and retrieval-augmented technologies.
- Active DoD Secret security clearance or higher.
Northrop Grumman Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Northrop Grumman and has not been reviewed or approved by Northrop Grumman.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage offers multiple medical plan options by region alongside dental, vision, mental‑health resources, and wellness programs. Recent materials also highlight added family‑building support, including a dedicated fertility benefit.
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Retirement Support — The 401(k) savings plan is positioned as competitive with a company match, auto‑escalation features, and access to an employee stock fund/ESPP. Official filings and benefits guides emphasize retirement as a core element of the Total Rewards package.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Many sites offer a 9/80 schedule, generous PTO, paid holidays, and flexible/telework options where program needs allow. Paid parental and caregiver leave are prominently featured, with recent enhancements for the delivering parent.
Northrop Grumman Insights
What We Do
We are a close-knit community of big thinkers collaborating to keep the world safe. Our passion, creativity and expertise bring next-level technology solutions to life in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, space, and logistics and modernization for our customers around the globe. On the Northrop Grumman team, you’ll join our pursuit of excellence immersed in a dynamic culture of innovation and respect. Your unique perspective will help achieve our shared vision for the future of global security. Every step of the way, you'll be supported by world-class training, employee resource groups and a comprehensive benefits package that enables greater health and happiness for you and your family. Worldwide and across disciplines, we’re challenging what’s possible for technology to protect people and places from undersea to outer space and into cyberspace. And we see the impact of our performance every day. We are Northrop Grumman, and we work on what matters—now, you too can make a difference. Explore opportunities in engineering, IT, manufacturing, business management, cybersecurity and more with us. Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
