Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems has an opening for a Sr Principal Project Manager Staffing Lead to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals in our RQ-4 organization. This role is located onsite in Rancho Bernardo. CA
In this role, you will be responsible for many aspects of staffing, noted categorically below. To be successful in this position, you would consider yourself a self-starter with a familiarity with technical operations and staffing.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead all workforce planning and staffing integration across WorkForce2, POST, the GSD Monthly Staffing & Resource Review Board, and the RQ 4 Staffing Review as the single point of accountability.
- Own the integrated WorkForce2 staffing plan and drive mitigation plans for gaps, surpluses, single points of failure, and aging vacancies.
- Manage and optimize POST requisitions (creation, activation, candidate tracking, closure) and reconcile POST and WorkForce2 data into a single authoritative staffing picture for RQ 4 leadership.
- Develop and maintain staffing dashboards, metrics, and reports for PMRs, resource review boards, and customer reviews, clearly linking staffing status to cost, schedule, and technical performance.
- Lead monthly GSD Staffing & Resource Review Board and recurring RQ 4 Staffing Reviews, preparing packages, presenting workforce risks/opportunities, and driving decisions and action closure across program, functional, HR, and TA.
- Ensure skills mix and labor category compliance against contractual and baseline plans, working with functional leadership and finance to correct misalignments and optimize staffing cost vs capability.
- Partner with IPTs to identify and mitigate staffing related risks and opportunities in TRIO/program registers, documenting and tracking mitigations for workforce issues (skills gaps, coverage risks, clearance delays) through closure.
- Work closely with EI&Es and FHR managers to ensure the staffing forecast is accurate, current, and aligned with program priorities, and to take a proactive approach to managing near term and long range staffing needs.
- Continuously improve staffing processes and tools (WorkForce2, POST, trackers) and act as an expert consultant/advisor to senior management on workforce strategy, staffing trade offs, and scenario planning for RQ-4.
Basic Qualifications
- Must have a Bachelors degree and at least 8 years of relevant military / professional experience (e.g., program staffing, workforce planning, project management, or operations), OR a Master's Degree and at least 6 years of relevant military / professional experience (e.g., program staffing, workforce planning, project management, or operations), OR a Ph.D. and at least 4 years of relevant military / professional experience (e.g., program staffing, workforce planning, project management, or operations)
- Must have experience with workforce planning, staffing coordination, resource management, or data analytics (e.g., tracking demand vs supply, managing requisitions, or coordinating assignments)
- Must have an active US Government Secret or higher clearance (with a background investigation completed within the last 6 years or currently enrolled into Continuous Evaluation).
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with workforce tools such as, WorkForce2, POST, trackers Experience with Tableau
- Experience supporting staffing in an aerospace/defense or similar highly regulated environment
- Experience managing staffing for programs with classified work, including coordination of clearance and access requirements.
- Demonstrated success driving improvements in staffing processes, metrics, or cycle times.
- Experience briefing high level executives
Skills Required
- Bachelor’s degree and at least 8 years of relevant military or professional experience, or a master’s degree and at least 6 years, or a Ph.D. and at least 4 years.
- Experience with workforce planning, staffing coordination, resource management, or data analytics.
- Active U.S. Government Secret or higher clearance, with a background investigation completed within the last 6 years or current enrollment in Continuous Evaluation.
- Experience with WorkForce2, POST, or staffing trackers.
- Experience with Tableau.
- Experience supporting staffing in aerospace, defense, or a similar highly regulated environment.
- Experience managing staffing for classified programs, including clearance and access coordination.
- Demonstrated success improving staffing processes, metrics, or cycle times.
- Experience briefing high-level executives.
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.








