Staff Engineer Software-18265 at Northrop Grumman
Huntsville, AL
$169,000–$253,600from the description
Jul 12, 2026
Huntsville, AL
Jul 21, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A senior technical leadership role focused on safety-critical, software-intensive defense systems for a nuclear cruise missile program. Day-to-day work spans requirements development using model-based systems engineering, functional safety analysis, cross-functional Agile team leadership, and supplier integration. The role suits a seasoned systems/software engineer with deep MBSE experience and a background in DoD safety-critical or nuclear surety programs.
Staff level · 12+ years · Huntsville, AL · Secret clearance · Full-time
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
Why we read it this way (9)
The role is titled 'Staff Software Lead' and explicitly uses the 'Staff' level designation; the scope (leading architecture across multiple IPTs, cross-functional teams, and supplier management on a DoD nuclear program) supports a Staff-level classification.
SOC classification is Medium confidence: the role blends systems engineering (MBSE, requirements decomposition, safety analysis) with software development leadership. 15-1252 was chosen because the primary deliverables are software artifacts and the role guides software development teams; 15-1211 (Computer Systems Analysts) is a credible alternative given the heavy MBSE/systems-engineering emphasis.
A Bachelor's degree is listed as the baseline, but the JD explicitly accepts '4 additional years of experience in lieu of a degree,' so the degree requirement is set to None.
The posting requires an active DoD Secret clearance at time of application and the ability to obtain Top Secret/SAP access. The hard gate at start is Secret; Top Secret is a condition to be met after hire.
DOORS and Cameo are listed under Preferred Qualifications. They are noted as 'or similar MBSE/SysML tools,' so each is marked preferred with the other as an alternative.
Jira and Confluence (Atlassian Tool Suite) appear only under Preferred Qualifications.
USAF Nuclear Surety (AFMAN 91-119) and cyber certification experience are listed as preferred; no specific tool or technology name was extracted as they represent domain knowledge rather than a named technology.
This position is noted as contingent upon funding.
Requires a Secret clearance — the cleared population is a small fraction of this occupation, so the real candidate pool is materially smaller than the estimate below, which does not model clearance.
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