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Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems has an opening for a Principal Human Factors Engineer / Senior Principal Human Factors Engineer to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals. Position is located in Melbourne, Florida.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
The Human Systems Integration team is seeking a Human Factors Engineer (HFE) to join Northrop Grumman. In this position, the new team member will be part of the team ensuring the evolving aircraft hardware and software systems are operable by US military flight and maintenance crews. This position requires a strong background in Systems Engineering. Job responsibilities include:
- Support the evaluation of requirements adhering to Human Factors best practices and specified sections of MIL-STD-1472.
- Contributions to Human Factors Analyses (including but not limited to: Task Analyses and Predictive Workload Analyses, Usability studies, Workload, and Situational Awareness surveys).
- Plan and Conduct Pilot in the Loop (PITL) assessments to evaluate the design. Analyze test data and generate a final test report.
- Support requirement verification test activities: Display Readability, Lighting Evaluations, Anthropometric Accommodation, Crew Alerting System (CAS) Evaluations, Modified Rhyme Testing (MRT), Maintenance Demonstrations etc.
- Conduct computer based (NX) and empirical accessibility assessments from both an operator and maintainer perspective.
- Author/support the program documentation of the HFE processes and products in a format consistent with US Military Data Item Descriptions (e.g. Human Engineering Program Plan, Human Engineering Design Approach Document – Operator, Human Engineering Design Approach Document – Maintainer, Human Engineering Test Plan, Human Engineering Test Report, et. al).
- Collaboration with Design Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) to ensure evolving design addresses program needs and adheres to Human Interface design requirements
- Support Airworthiness analysis, artifact development, and compliance summaries.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
- Principal Engineer Human Factors: Bachelor's degree and 5 years of experience in a Human Factors related field; or a Master's degree and 3 years of experience in a related field; or a PhD and 1 year of experience in a related field.
- Senior Principal Engineer Human Factors: Bachelor's degree and 8 years of experience in a Human Factors related field; or a Master's degree and 6 years of experience in a related field; or a PhD and 4 years of experience in a related field.
- Experience with MIL-STD-1472, Human Factor survey development, test procedure development/execution, and/or test report writing.
- Must have an active DoD Secret (or higher) clearance (with a background investigation within the past 6 years or enrolled into Continuous Evaluation) and the ability to obtain Program Access.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- Active, In-Scope TOP SECRET DoD security clearance with the ability to obtain Program Access
- Experience developing, administering and/or analyzing Human Factors questionnaires such as Usability, Workload, and Situational Awareness.
- Proficiency in writing and executing demonstration & test procedures
- The ability to clearly and accurately express engineering findings orally and in written technical reports and presentations.
- Familiar with the interpretation and application of systems safety, personnel survivability, and habitability requirements to system design
- Experience with CAD Tools (NX and NX Jack Expertise preferred)
- Experience with system engineering processes and tools (DOORS preferred)
- Experience in system modeling tools (i.e., CORE, Rhapsody, PTC Integrity Modeler, Cameo)
- Understand systems and design thinking as well as HMI/HCI design principles and practices
- Experience authoring Human Interface Design CDRLs in accordance with DoD Data Item Descriptions (e.g. HEDAD-M/O, HEPP, HSIPP, HETP/R, etc)
- Experience interpreting, applying, and/or tailoring MIL-STD-1472, MIL-STD-411, MIL-STD-1787, MIL-STD-3009, and/or MIL-STD-46855 in support of aircraft design activity
Skills Required
- Bachelor's/Master's/PhD in Human Factors or related field with required years of experience for Principal/Senior Principal levels (per job posting)
- Active DoD Secret (or higher) clearance with background investigation within past 6 years or enrolled in Continuous Evaluation and ability to obtain Program Access
- Experience with MIL-STD-1472, human factors survey development, test procedure development/execution, and technical test report writing
- Strong background in Systems Engineering and ability to integrate HFE into system design and verification
- Ability to plan and conduct Pilot-in-the-Loop (PITL) assessments, analyze test data, and produce test reports; support verification tests (display readability, lighting, anthropometry, CAS, MRT, maintenance demonstrations)
- U.S. Citizenship (required for positions with government clearance)
- Active, in-scope Top Secret DoD clearance (preferred)
- Experience developing/administering/analyzing human factors questionnaires (usability, workload, situational awareness) and proficiency in writing/executing demonstration & test procedures
- Experience with CAD tools (NX, NX Jack) and empirical accessibility assessments (NX Jack expertise preferred)
- Experience with systems engineering tools and configuration management (DOORS preferred)
- Experience with system modeling tools (CORE, Rhapsody, PTC Integrity Modeler, Cameo)
- Familiarity with systems safety, personnel survivability, habitability requirements, HMI/HCI design principles, and authoring DoD Human Interface CDRLs
- Experience interpreting/applying MIL-STD-1472, MIL-STD-411, MIL-STD-1787, MIL-STD-3009, MIL-STD-46855 in aircraft design support
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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Retirement Support — 401(k) matching is considered strong, with additional defined-benefit coverage for certain cohorts and options like catch-up contributions. Retirement programs are repeatedly highlighted as a core strength of the total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — PTO, company-paid holidays, and compressed work schedules (such as 9/80) provide meaningful time away and flexibility. These scheduling options are cited as a major quality-of-life benefit across many locations.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave alongside caregiver leave, adoption assistance, and back-up care supports a range of family needs. These programs have been expanded recently, signaling continued investment in family support.
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