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.
Please note that this opportunity is contingent on program funding. Start dates are determined after funding confirmation.
Northrop Grumman’s Aeronautics Systems sector is seeking a Sr. Principal EO/IR Systems Engineer to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals in defining the future. This position will be located in Melbourne, FL.
The selected engineer will perform as a member of an interdisciplinary team of engineers and scientists on a key effort to develop novel and innovative solutions to advanced technical problems. The successful engineer will contribute to the overall development of electro-optical infrared (EO/IR) systems, including developing, integrating, and applying system performance models, constructing, and testing demonstration systems, creating/refining/implementing system concepts and models, implementing test procedures, and verifying/validating system performance. You will design, develop, build, and test electro-optical systems in conjunction with key suppliers.
Responsibilities include:
Design and develop electro-optical systems architectures, perform hardware/software integration and testing, certification and requirements analysis
Interpret, allocate, tailor, write and flow down requirements to all levels of a system architecture
Trade studies, documenting architectures, analyzing performance, and evaluating Technology Readiness Level (TRL) with regard to supplier current and future products offerings
Perform MBSE and capturing requirements, interfaces, behaviors, structures and parametrics
Collaborate with engineers and program stakeholders to integrate mission planning solutions to meet platform mission objectives
Developing and maintaining supplier documentation, performance based specifications, and statements of work
Building supplier evaluation criteria and experience in conducting technical evaluations, documenting results and selection
Technical management of program strategic partners and suppliers, including development, acquisition, acceptance, qualification, system integration and test support
Review documents from the supplier’s development effort and support supplier technical interchange meetings and design reviews
Identifying/planning/executing informal and formal testing of subsystem requirements in lab, troubleshooting hardware in the lab
Performing aircraft ground and flight test on subsystems to validate and verify subsystem requirement and sell-off
Leading technical discussions with the customer and having daily interaction with management, external personnel, customers, and various sub teams
A successful EOIR Engineer has good leadership skills and understands the scope of the work and the impact of the work on other teams, consistently brings up concerns, issues and risks to program and technical leadership and holds the team to a high level of technical rigor.
Basic Qualifications:
Sr. Principal EO/IR Systems Engineer (T04):
Must have a Bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline from an accredited university AND 8 years of related professional/military experience in Engineering; OR a Master’s degree in a STEM discipline from an accredited university AND 6 years of related professional/military experience in Engineering; or a Ph.D. AND 4 years of related professional/military experience in Engineering.
Your ability to transfer and maintain the final adjudicated government Secret clearance, and any program access(es) required for the position within a reasonable period of time, as determined by the company.
Knowledge of EO/IR phenomenology
Experience in decomposing, deriving, allocating and tracing requirements from system to component level
Demonstrated strong verbal and written communication skills and the ability to work well in a close team environment
Experience engaging directly with internal and external technical and programmatic representatives
Preferred Qualifications:
Demonstrated problem solving and troubleshooting skills
Demonstrated ability to assimilate new concepts quickly and independently and work in a self-directed manner
Experience in EO/IR system and atmospheric modeling
Experience with working on a multidisciplinary team and writing technical proposals
Experience in model based systems engineering using Cameo or similar SysML tools
Familiarity with Atlassian collaboration tool set (Jira and Confluence)
Experience with scheduling engineering activities
Experience with Agile development
Experience in supplier/subcontract management
Experience with developing supplier documentation, performance-based specifications, and statements of work
Experience building supplier evaluation criteria and experience in conducting technical evaluations, documenting results and selection
Ability to review documents from the supplier’s development effort and support supplier technical interchange meetings and design review
Experience in lab testing, hardware/software verification, and concept development
#AS-FA3
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in STEM and 8 years engineering experience OR Master's with 6 years OR Ph.D. with 4 years
- Ability to transfer and maintain final adjudicated government Secret clearance
- Knowledge of EO/IR phenomenology
- Experience decomposing, deriving, allocating and tracing requirements from system to component level
- Strong verbal and written communication skills and ability to work in a close team environment
- Experience engaging directly with internal and external technical and programmatic representatives
- Problem solving and troubleshooting skills
- Experience in EO/IR system and atmospheric modeling
- Experience with model based systems engineering using Cameo or similar SysML tools
- Familiarity with Atlassian tool set (Jira and Confluence)
- Experience with scheduling engineering activities and Agile development
- Experience in supplier/subcontract management and developing supplier documentation, performance-based specifications, and statements of work
- Experience conducting supplier technical evaluations, documentation, and selection
- Experience in lab testing, hardware/software verification, and concept development; aircraft ground and flight test 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.
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.
