Sr. Principal Software Development Analyst – Quality Engineering & Business Process Integration

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.

At the heart of Defining Possible is our commitment to missions. In rapidly changing global security environments, Northrop Grumman brings informed insights and secure technological solutions to enable strategic objectives. We’re looking for innovators who can help us keep building on our wide portfolio of secure, affordable, integrated, and multi-domain systems and technologies that fuel those missions.

By joining in our shared mission, we will support yours by expanding your personal network and developing skills, whether you are new to the field or an industry thought leader. At Northrop Grumman, you will have the resources, support, and team to do some of the best work of your career.

The Northrop Grumman CIDO team is seeking a Sr Staff Software Development Analyst to support PLM Architect Solutions. The selected candidate will be required to work on-site, full-time either our Roy, UT, Melbourne, FL, San Diego, CA, or Palmdale, CA locations.

The Sr. Principal Software Development Analyst – Quality Engineering & Business Process Integration operates as a senior individual contributor at a senior principal level, providing enterprise‑wide leadership in software testing, quality engineering, and quality governance.

This role is responsible for defining and driving testing standards, enhancing software quality practices, advancing test automation capabilities, and ensuring technology solutions integrate effectively with critical business processes.

The ideal candidate combines deep expertise in software testing and quality engineering with strong business process understanding and cross‑functional collaboration skills. Working across product, development, operations, and business teams, this individual will influence engineering excellence at scale and ensure business requirements are translated into reliable, secure, and high‑performing solutions.

Note

Due to the classified nature of the work being performed, this position does not offer any virtual or telecommute working options. Applicants are encouraged to apply, only if they are willing to work on-site.

The responsibilities of this role include, but are not limited to, the following:

Quality Engineering Leadership

• Define and drive enterprise‑wide software testing and quality engineering standards, aligned with NG engineering and delivery frameworks.
• Establish and maintain quality metrics, KPIs, and reporting mechanisms to measure software reliability, release confidence, and delivery effectiveness.
• Lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of testing frameworks, methodologies, and best practices across diverse applications and platforms.
• Champion shift‑left testing strategies and quality‑by‑design principles throughout the SDLC, influencing teams to embed quality early and consistently.
• Provide technical leadership for functional, integration, regression, performance, and user acceptance testing initiatives, including test strategy, planning, and execution oversight.
• Serve as a senior technical advisor on quality topics to product teams, engineering leadership, and operations stakeholders.

Test Automation & Tooling

• Lead the design, expansion, and governance of automated testing capabilities across enterprise applications, APIs, and integrations.
• Evaluate, recommend, and help implement modern testing tools and frameworks (e.g., UI automation, API testing, performance testing, and test data management solutions).
• Define and enforce CI/CD quality gates and automated validation processes; ensure automated tests are integrated into build and deployment pipelines.
• Ensure automated test coverage supports release readiness, operational stability, and rapid yet safe deployment practices.
• Partner closely with DevOps and engineering teams to integrate testing activities into continuous integration and continuous delivery workflows.

Quality Governance & Risk Management

• Develop and maintain software quality assurance controls, standards, and governance frameworks that are consistent across programs and platforms.
• Conduct quality reviews and testing assessments for critical initiatives, providing recommendations to improve test strategy, coverage, and risk mitigation.
• Identify software quality risks and defects trends; recommend mitigation strategies and systemic improvements.
• Support regulatory, audit, compliance, and security testing requirements, partnering with security and compliance teams as needed.
• Facilitate root cause analysis and corrective action planning for production incidents; drive lessons‑learned into updated standards and practices.

Business Process Integration & Analysis

• Collaborate with business stakeholders to understand operational workflows, process dependencies, and customer experience goals.
• Ensure software solutions align with business objectives, process efficiencies, and quality outcomes; identify gaps between intended and actual process behavior.
• Analyze business processes and identify opportunities to improve quality through automation, workflow optimization, and improved test coverage.
• Translate business requirements and process changes into measurable quality objectives and corresponding testing strategies.
• Support process improvement initiatives that enhance software delivery effectiveness, operational stability, and business performance.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration & Technical Influence

• Partner with Product Management, Software Engineering, Architecture, Operations, Security, and Business teams to align quality engineering efforts with strategic priorities.
• Provide guidance and mentorship to quality engineers, analysts, and testing teams, enabling consistent adoption of best practices across the organization.
• Facilitate quality planning sessions, release readiness reviews, and go/no‑go discussions for critical releases.
• Communicate testing outcomes, quality risks, and recommendations clearly to executive and technical stakeholders; prepare concise, data‑driven summaries of quality status.
• Advocate for continuous improvement in engineering and quality practices across teams and programs.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related STEM discipline with 8 years of relevant experience OR Master’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related STEM discipline with 6 years of relevant experience
• Candidates must have a current US Government Secret level security clearance in order to be considered
• 5+ years of experience in software development, quality engineering, software testing, or closely related disciplines.
• 3+ years of experience leading enterprise or multi‑program testing and quality initiatives as a senior technical individual contributor or quality lead.
• Experience with software testing methodologies, SDLC, and Agile/DevOps practices, including test planning, design, execution, and reporting.
• Strong experience with automated testing tools and fr