Northrop Grumman Mission Systems is a trusted provider of mission-enabling solutions for global security. Our Engineering and Sciences (E&S) organization pushes the boundaries of innovation, redefines engineering capabilities, and drives advances in various sciences. Our team is chartered with providing the skills, innovative technologies to develop, design, produce and sustain optimized product lines across the sector while providing a decisive advantage to the warfighter. Come be a part of our mission!
This role serves as a Principal/Sr. Principal Scrum Master for the Infrared Countermeasures (IRCM) or Targeting teams. You will be a servant‑leader for one or more agile software development teams, guiding them through Scrum processes, removing impediments, and cultivating a high‑performance, self‑organizing environment. You will partner closely with Product Owners, Engineering Leads, and stakeholders to ensure predictable delivery of high‑quality software releases within allocated budgets. You will also be responsible for managing the team’s use of Atlassian agile tools.
In this role, you must have knowledge and experience in EVM and technical teams. You will be working in a fast-paced environment and must be able to manage. You will be responsible for prioritizing and accomplishing simultaneous tasks, managing and tracking budgets, and ensuring scrum teams stay on track. Flexibility in understanding that strict Agile must be tailored to meet EVM budget and schedule requirements is a must.
Responsibilities Include:
- Facilitates daily scrum, sprint planning, sprint review, retrospectives, and improves Agile practices within the development lifecycle
- Oversees a tailored Agile framework to ensure operational excellence in product deliveries while staying within the confines of EVM budget and schedule constraints.
- Provides guidance and helps educate the team in Scrum, Kanban, and Scaled Agile framework (SAFe), ensuring that the custom Agile process is being followed.
- Helps remove impediments and foster an environment for high-performing team dynamics, continuous flow, and relentless improvement.
- Work with customers and stakeholders to refine and prioritize the backlogs.
- Provide “product line” perspective to teams.
- Manage risks, dependencies, and feature commitments for all thread teams.
- Schedule meetings to kickoff and review features for capability definition and verification signoff activities.
- Collaborating with stakeholders to define the work so that the team can review, commit, and execute within a defined period.
- Ensure that the team understand the intent and requirements of feature and user story definitions, and that the team is aligned on all acceptance criteria.
#MSRMTA
This position will be full-time and on-site at our Rolling Meadows, IL. Location
This position is contingent upon Funding/Contract award, special access program and acquiring and maintaining the necessary US Government security clearance per customers' requirements prior to start.
This position can be filled at either the Principal or Sr. Principal level based on requirements below
Basic Requirements for Principal Scrum Master:
- Bachelor of Science degree in a STEM discipline, and 5 years of industry related experience, OR a Master’s with 3 years of industry related experience, OR PhD and 1 year of industry related experience OR in lieu of a degree, an additional 4 years of experience is required.
- Thorough knowledge of Agile principles, practices and methods, particularly Scrum
- Experienced Scrum Master (proof of experience needed) - Running Scrums, using Jira
- Working knowledge of software engineering principles and processes
- Ability to obtain and maintain a minimum of a Secret Clearance with additional customer specified clearance prior to start.
Basic Requirements for Sr. Principal Scrum Master:
- Bachelor of Science degree in a STEM discipline or Project Management, and 8 years of industry related experience, OR a Masters with 6 years of industry related experience, OR PhD and 4 years of industry related experience OR in lieu of a degree, an additional 4 years of experience is required.
- Thorough knowledge of Agile principles, practices and methods, particularly Scrum
- Experienced Scrum Master (proof of experience needed) - Running Scrums, using Jira
- Working knowledge of software engineering principles and processes
- Ability to obtain and maintain a minimum of a Secret Clearance with additional customer specified clearance prior to start.
Preferred Requirements:
- Software development background
- Defense industry background
- Process management experience.
- Holds a Scrum Master certification, e.g., CSM, PSM I, PSM II, SASM, etc.
- Active Secret clearance
Skills Required
- Bachelor of Science in a STEM discipline and 5 years industry experience OR Master's with 3 years OR PhD with 1 year OR in lieu of degree, additional 4 years experience (Principal)
- Bachelor of Science in a STEM discipline or Project Management and 8 years industry experience OR Master's with 6 years OR PhD with 4 years OR in lieu of degree, additional 4 years experience (Sr. Principal)
- Thorough knowledge of Agile principles, practices and methods, particularly Scrum
- Experienced Scrum Master (proof of experience) — running scrums and using Jira
- Working knowledge of software engineering principles and processes
- Ability to obtain and maintain a minimum of a Secret clearance with additional customer-specified clearance prior to start
- Software development background
- Defense industry background
- Process management experience
- Holds a Scrum Master certification (e.g., CSM, PSM I, PSM II, SASM)
- Active Secret clearance
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.
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.






