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Sr Principal Systems Engineer - IPT Lead

Northrop Grumman

Chandler, AZJob$123–184K/yrSeen 2 days agoSeen in employer's feed 2 days ago

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At a glance

Compensation
$123–184K/yr
Location
Chandler, AZ
Work Authorization
US work authorization required

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Requirements

Credentials this posting asks for.

Secret clearance, required

Job overview

Northrop Grumman Space Systems seeks a Sr Principal Systems Engineer - IPT Lead in Chandler, Arizona, to lead systems engineering efforts on advanced missile programs. The role includes trade studies, interface control documents, technical leadership across multidisciplinary teams, and management of scope, cost, and schedule using control account management and earned value practices. The candidate must hold an active U.S. Government Secret clearance at application.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Model-Based Systems Engineering, requiredSysML, requiredCameo/MagicDraw, requiredRhapsody, requiredMultidisciplinary Engineering Leadership, requiredControl Account Management, requiredEarned Value Management, requiredIntegrated Product Team Leadership, requiredWritten Communication, requiredVerbal Communication, requiredTechnical Presentations, requiredMissile Systems, nice to haveRange Safety, nice to haveMissile Launches, nice to haveMission Planning, nice to haveMission Execution, nice to haveIntegration and Test, nice to haveHardware-in-the-Loop Testing, nice to haveRequirements Management, nice to haveDOORS, nice to haveJama, nice to haveConfiguration Management, nice to haveMIL-STDs, nice to have

Qualifications

Bachelor's in STEM or Master's in STEM, required8 Years Related Engineering Experience or 6 Years With Master's, requiredActive Secret Security Clearance, requiredTop Secret/SCI Clearance, nice to haveMaster's in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or Related Field, nice to have

Benefits

Medical Insurance
Paid Time Off
401(k) Match

Full job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time

Description

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.

Northrop Grumman Space Systems has an opening for a Sr Principal Systems Engineer - IPT Lead to join our team in Chandler, AZ .

We are seeking a highly experienced Systems Engineer to lead complex systems engineering efforts on advanced missile programs. This role will own major trade studies, develop and manage Interface Control Documents (ICDs), and provide technical leadership across a multi-disciplinary team. The ideal candidate has a strong MBSE background, demonstrated leadership of Integrated Product Teams (IPTs), and experience managing scope, cost, and schedule using control account management and earned value management (EVM) practices.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Lead system-level trade studies to evaluate design alternatives, assess performance vs. cost/schedule/risk, and support architecture decisions for advanced missile systems.

  • Develop, maintain, and baseline system- and subsystem-level Interface Control Documents (ICDs), including mechanical, electrical, data, and software interfaces.

  • Apply Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) methods and tools to capture requirements, architecture, behaviors, and verification/validation plans.

  • Serve as a technical lead for multi-disciplinary engineering teams (e.g., GNC, avionics, propulsion, structures, software, I&T), ensuring system-level integration and design coherence.

  • Act as Control Account Manager (CAM) for assigned work scope, including planning, budgeting, tracking, and reporting performance.

  • Implement Earned Value Management (EVM) principles to monitor cost and schedule, identify variances, and develop recovery plans.

  • Lead and coordinate Integrated Product Teams (IPTs), driving technical execution, risk management, and cross-functional issue resolution.

  • Develop and maintain systems engineering artifacts including requirements documents, CONOPS, specifications, verification matrices, and system-level test strategies.

  • Support integration and test planning and execution, including test readiness reviews, anomaly resolution, and verification/validation activities.

  • Participate in customer technical interchange meetings, design reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR), and formal reviews, presenting technical status, risks, and mitigations.

  • Support risk and opportunity management, including identification, assessment, and mitigation planning at the system level.

Basic Qualifications:

  • Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline (Science, Technology, Engineering or Math) with 8 years of related engineering experience; OR a Master’s degree in STEM with 6 years of related engineering experience

  • Requires an active U.S. Government Secret security clearance at time of application, current and within scop e

  • Hands-on experience with Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) tools and practices (e.g., SysML, Cameo/MagicDraw, Rhapsody, or equivalent).

  • Demonstrated multi-disciplinary engineering leadership on complex hardware/ software integrated systems.

  • Proven experience as a Control Account Manager (CAM) or equivalent role, responsible for scope, cost, and schedule.

  • Working knowledge and practical application of Earned Value Management (EVM) principles and metrics (e.g., CPI, SPI, variance analysis).

  • Experience leading or co-leading Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) or cross-functional technical teams.

  • Strong written and verbal communication skills, including experience preparing and delivering technical presentations to internal and external stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Master’s degree in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related technical field.

  • Significant experience with missile systems or other launch/flight vehicles (e.g., tactical or strategic missiles, interceptors, sounding rockets, or space launch).

  • Familiarity with range and range safety requirements, processes, and interfaces (e.g., Eastern/Western Range, flight safety analyses, flight termination systems).

  • Experience supporting or leading missile launches , including pre-launch integration, test, countdown, and post-flight assessment.

  • Background in mission planning and mission execution for missile or launch systems, including trajectory design, constraints, and operational considerations.

  • Experience with integration & test (I&T) of complex flight hardware and software, including hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) and system-level testing.

  • Knowledge of requirements development and management tools (e.g., DOORS, Jama) and configuration management practices.

  • Familiarity with government and industry standards relevant to missile and launch systems (e.g., MIL-STDs, range safety directives, flight safety criteria).

  • Possess and maintain a Top Secret / SCI security clearance.

Curious about all the exciting developments with the Northrop Grumman Space Sector? Click the link below:

https://www.northropgrumman.com/space

Working at Northrop Grumman is more than just a paycheck. We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards and benefits package designed to help you thrive at work and in life. For more information on our Total Rewards package, please visit our Total Rewards site.

Northrop Grumman Total Rewards (https://totalrewards.northropgrumman.com/?\_gl=1*1y2u5rc*\_gcl\_au*MTkyMjcyNDUxNS4xNzUyNTg4MDg3*\_ga*MzA4NDM5NjgzLjE2NzM5ODM3ODg.*\_ga\_7YV3CDX0R2*czE3NTMyNzU3NDgkbzEyMzckZzEkdDE3NTMyNzY2ODQkajU5JGwwJGgw)

Primary Level Salary Range: $122,800.00 - $184,200.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

Job Category: Engineering

How this job compares

Set against the 11,894 open Systems Engineer jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 10, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$123–184K/yr
  • Arizona median$98–183K/yr175 salary ranges
  • US median$115–190K/yr8,804 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $154K, is 5% above the Arizona median midpoint ($146K) — in the middle half of Systems Engineer salary ranges in Arizona.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 270 open Systems Engineer jobs in Arizona and 11,894 across the US. 5% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in Arizona
Experience
This posting asks for at least 6 years of experience; Systems Engineer postings that state a minimum ask for 5 years at the median (9,814 postings).
Education
4,402 of the 11,894 open Systems Engineer jobs (37%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 10, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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