Staff Engineer Survivability - Operations Analysis Software Product Owner (California)
Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems (NGAS) Center of Technical Excellence (COTE) Survivability Design and Analysis is seeking an Staff Engineer Survivability - Operations Analysis Software Product Owner to join our team in El Segundo, CA.
This position is 100% onsite and cannot accommodate telecommute work. This position will work a 9/80 schedule, with every other Friday off.
This role will oversee the development, maintenance and deployment of an Operations Analysis and Mission Engineering tool, capable of capturing operational effects with physics-based modeling of sensors and advanced detection and tracking algorithms to determine Mission Effectiveness and Survivability of multiple platforms. This tool supports the Operations Analysis community across NGAS Divisions and Programs, with opportunities for collaboration across sectors.
The ideal candidate has relevant DevOps experience and prior Product Owner experience. We are looking for self-directed professionals who thrive in collaborative environments.
Essential Functions:
- Serve as the Product Owner of a software development team
- Serve as the CAM, keep budget updated, manage staffing plan
- Collaborate with NGPCN lab manager to ensure the development team has adequate lab hardware and software resources
- Coordinate vertically and horizontally with multiple engineering teams and organizations to prioritize stakeholder needs
- To work with stakeholders, both internal and external, to develop solutions to solve Government needs across multiple programs and advance warfighter capabilities
- Own the integrated Product Roadmap, defining the priorities of software capabilities consistent with stakeholder mission needs
- Iterate Product Roadmap with the stakeholder to address evolving priorities
- Decompose stakeholders’ needs to create, refine, and prioritize the product backlog; support all aspects of backlog refinement and story mapping
- Drive performance of the team to accomplish sprint and release commitments, escalate and remove impediments, and participate in status and progress reporting to senior management
- Engage in Program Increment (PI) Planning Activities; ensure PI objectives reflect customer priorities and business value, identify risks and dependencies for the Scrum Team and across the program
Basic Qualifications:
- Must have a Bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline from an accredited university AND 12 years of related professional/military experience in Engineering; OR a Master’s degree in a STEM discipline from an accredited university AND 10 years of related professional/military experience in Engineering; or a Ph.D. AND 8 years of related professional/military experience in Engineering
- Software Development experience
- 2+ years of CAM experience
- 2+ years EVM Experience
- Product Owner Certification
- An active U.S. Government Secret Security Clearance current and within scope, at time of application with the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Programs (SAPs) within a reasonable period of time, as determined by the company to meet its business needs
Preferred Qualifications:
- Active U.S. Government Top Secret Security Clearance
- Operations Analysis and/or Mission Engineering Experience
- Experience in MATLAB, Python, C#, or C/C++ or other advanced programming languages
- Knowledge of domain-specific radar principles, including signal processing, target acquisition, target tracking, resource management, discrimination, and battle manager interfaces.
- Familiarity with related to air vehicle sensors (RF, EO/IR, radar, ESM, SAR, etc.), data processing/fusion, data links, navigation, or vehicle control
- Familiarity in USAF modeling and simulations tools such as AFSIM, Suppressor, ESAMS, STK or other engagement or mission level models
- Systems Engineering and/or System Test Experience
- Experience with Atlassian Tool suite
- Product Owner Experience 5+ years
- Product Owner Certification
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills, ability to work independently, and possess the poise and flexibility required to work in a highly dynamic environment
- An active U.S. Government Top Secret Security Clearance TS SCI/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) clearance [TS/SCI] current and within scope, at time of application; current or previous Special Access Program (SAP) clearance held
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in STEM and 12 years related engineering experience OR Master's degree and 10 years OR Ph.D. and 8 years
- Active U.S. Government Secret Security Clearance current and within scope; ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Programs (SAPs)
- Software development experience
- Product Owner Certification
- 2+ years CAM (Contract Account Manager) experience
- 2+ years Earned Value Management (EVM) experience
- DevOps experience
- Operations Analysis or Mission Engineering experience
- Experience with MATLAB, Python, C#, or C/C++
- Familiarity with radar principles and air vehicle sensors (RF, EO/IR, ESM, SAR), data fusion, or navigation
- Familiarity with USAF modeling and simulation tools (AFSIM, Suppressor, ESAMS, STK) or other engagement/mission models
- Experience with Atlassian tool suite
- Product Owner experience (5+ years)
- Active Top Secret or TS/SCI and/or SAP clearance (current or previous)
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.







