Join Northrop Grumman on our continued mission to push the boundaries of possible across land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace. Enjoy a culture where your voice is valued and start contributing to our team of passionate professionals providing real-life solutions to our world’s biggest challenges. We take pride in creating purposeful work and allowing our employees to grow and achieve their goals every day by Defining Possible. With our competitive pay and comprehensive benefits, we have the right opportunities to fit your life and launch your career today.
We have an opening for a Staff Ground Software Engineer to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals in the Tactical Space organization. This position will be in Dulles, VA. This work will primarily be performed in a SCIF environment so onsite work is required.
Job Responsibilities
In this role you will:
- Advise on integration of new emerging industry technologies to the program’s systems
- Implement engineering changes to the system as required
- Review, analyze, and incorporate technical requirements into end-to-end system architectures
- Full lifecycle design, implementation, and unit testing of software
- Work with various team members to integrate functionality with other software components
- Ability to lead a team and/or provide leadership to drive solutions of complex problems
- Support software working groups with the customer
- Develop software products from all phases of the software lifecycle
- Develop and share technical documentation and presentations
- Identify and implementing new or improved tools and processes to increase team efficiency
- Perform technical planning, system integration, verification and validation, cost and risk, and supportability and effectiveness analyses for total systems
- Ensure the logical and systematic conversion of customer or product requirements into total systems solutions that acknowledge technical, schedule, and cost constraints
- Lead Engineering teams with program execution
- Mentor Engineers on all phases of the Program
- Support the software department, software center, and software sector in their day-to-day activities
- Lead a team of Software Developers, supporting their needs, training, and career growth
To be successful in this role you should have:
- Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment with quick turnaround times and shifting priorities
- Proven troubleshooting skills and willingness to take on unfamiliar challenges
- 2+ years of experience in Linux tools/automation and shell scripting
- 5+ years of experience in Python, C++, or another Object Oriented Programming Language
- 2+ years of experience with Docker containerization, Kubernetes (K8s) orchestration preferred
- 2+ years of experience with continuous integration/deployment tools such as Jenkins or GitLab
In this role, you will lead a High-Side Ground Software Development team and will be expected to provide leadership to the team in areas pertaining to technical needs.
Basic Qualifications
- Must either have a bachelor’s Degree in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline and 12 years of relevant software experience that includes a background in software development, OR a Master’s degree in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline AND 10 years of related professional experience, OR a PhD in in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline and 8 years of relevant software experience
- Must be familiar with all phases of the software development life cycle and Agile software development
- Prior lead or management experience in a team environment
- In-depth working knowledge and experience with C/C++, Java, Python, or other OOP languages
- Expert knowledge and experience developing software
- Experience with configuration management using industry standard tools and processes
- Active DoD Top Secret level clearance at time of application and the ability to obtain and maintain special program access
Preferred Qualifications:
- Active TS/SCI clearance
- Master’s degree in computer science or computer engineering
- Familiarity with Rhapsody, Cameo, Eclipse, Atlassian Tools (Jira, Bitbucket, Confluence, Crucible, Bamboo)
- Experience with Agile methodologies
- Experience with containerization technology (e.g. Podman, Docker)
- Experience with container orchestration systems (e.g. Kubernetes)
- Experience with virtualization technology (e.g. VirtualBox, QEMU, KVM, vmWare)
- Experience with scripting (Bash, Python)
- Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and Atlassian tools
- Experience working in a DevOps culture with continuous integration / continuous deliveries “CI/CD”
- Preferred candidates will have demonstrated leadership of engineering personnel on a Northrop Grumman Corporation program to include software architecture oversight
- Hold an active Program Access clearance
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in STEM discipline and 12 years relevant software experience OR Master's in STEM and 10 years OR PhD in STEM and 8 years
- Active DoD Top Secret level clearance at time of application and ability to obtain and maintain special program access
- Familiarity with all phases of the software development life cycle and Agile software development
- Prior lead or management experience in a team environment
- In-depth working knowledge and experience with C/C++, Java, Python, or other object-oriented programming languages
- Expert knowledge and experience developing software
- Experience with configuration management using industry standard tools and processes
- 2+ years of experience in Linux tools/automation and shell scripting
- 5+ years of experience in Python, C++, or another object oriented programming language
- 2+ years of experience with continuous integration/deployment tools such as Jenkins or GitLab
- 2+ years of experience with Docker containerization (preferred)
- 2+ years of experience with Kubernetes (K8s) orchestration (preferred)
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.








