Staff Software Lead/Architect (Level 5)

About the role

Northrop Grumman's Space Sector is seeking a Staff Software Lead/Architect (Level 5) to join the Western Region Software Engineering directorate. This position is located onsite in Redondo Beach, CA. The Staff Software Lead/Architect will lead the architecture, design, roadmap development, and system modeling for a containerized software platform supporting a space mission planning system. The solution will be cloud‑deployed, integrate with Kafka as the backend data source, and be implemented in Java, Python, or C++.

Responsibilities

• Support the architecture definition for the integration of existing and new capabilities for a containerized, cloud‑deployed mission planning system.
• Develop and maintain the technical roadmap, aligning architecture decisions with product and program milestones.
• Design integration patterns between application services and Kafka for streaming and event‑driven data processing.
• Create architecture models and documentation using CAMEO (e.g., sequence diagrams, component diagrams) to communicate designs to stakeholders.
• Collaborate with product owners, systems engineers, and developers to refine requirements into scalable technical designs.
• Define non‑functional requirements (performance, reliability, security, scalability, observability).
• Review and guide implementation in Java, Python, and/or C++ to ensure alignment with architecture and coding standards.
• Establish and enforce architectural standards, patterns, and best practices (e.g., microservices vs modular monolith, API design, event‑driven architecture).
• Support CI/CD pipeline design and DevSecOps practices for cloud‑hosted, containerized deployments.
• Perform design and code reviews with a focus on reliability, testability, and maintainability.
• Participate in risk identification and mitigation related to architecture and technology choices.
• Demonstrated ability to produce clear architecture models and documentation, such as component diagrams and sequence diagrams.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical concepts to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline with 12+ years of software engineering experience, or a Master's degree in a STEM discipline with 10+ years of stated experience, or a Ph.D. in a STEM discipline with 8+ years of stated experience.
• Must have an active U.S. Government Top Secret clearance at time of application, with the ability and willingness to obtain Special Program Access within a reasonable period of time as determined by the company.
• Strong programming skills in at least one of the following: Java, Python, or C++.
• Prior experience designing and implementing distributed systems.
• Prior leadership experience as a software architect, lead engineer, or comparable technical leadership role.
• Experience designing and deploying cloud applications, including event‑driven architectures, microservices, and Kafka‑based solutions.
• Familiarity with CI/CD and modern DevSecOps practices (e.g., automated testing, container image scanning, infrastructure as code).
• Experience with Kafka or other asynchronous communication protocols.

Preferred Qualifications

• Active U.S. Government TS/SCI clearance.
• Solid understanding of software design principles and patterns (e.g., data‑driven design, loosely coupled design, domain‑driven design).
• Experience architecting and deploying applications to at least one major cloud platform (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP), including use of managed services where appropriate.
• Experience designing systems for space mission planning or other near real‑time planning and scheduling domains.
• Experience with stream processing frameworks (e.g., Kafka Streams) or event‑sourcing/CQRS patterns.
• Experience modeling complex systems using UAF, UML, SysML, or similar formal modeling notations.
• Knowledge of distributed system concerns, such as blue/green or canary deployments for cloud applications and fault tolerance.
• Experience with API design (REST, gRPC, GraphQL) and contract‑first development (e.g., OpenAPI, protobuf).
• Experience with infrastructure as code (e.g., Helm, Terraform, CloudFormation) for repeatable deployment of cloud and Kubernetes resources.
• Background in security for cloud and containerized systems, including authentication/authorization, secrets management, network segmentation, and compliance considerations.
• Hands‑on experience with containerization and orchestration (Docker, Podman, Kubernetes).

Pay & benefits

• Primary Level Salary Range: $177,000.00 – $265,600.00 (base salary offers consider scope, responsibilities, experience, education, skills, and market conditions).
• Employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.
• Annual bonuses designed to reward individual contributions and allow employees to share in company results.
• Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives.
• Benefits include: Medical, Dental & Vision coverage; 401k; Educational Assistance; Life Insurance; Employee Assistance Programs & Work/Life Solutions; Paid Time Off; Health & Wellness Resources; Employee Discounts; Flexible Schedules (e.g., 9/80 work schedule allowing every other Friday off).

Schedule & travel

• Travel: Yes, 10% of the time.
• Relocation assistance may be available.
• This position requires an active Top Secret clearance and the ability to obtain Special Program Access.

This position is contingent upon capturing program award(s) and obtaining and maintaining associated business and/or customer funding, as well as the candidate obtaining final clearances and program access(es) within a reasonable period of time as determined by the company. Continued employment thereafter will be subject to maintenance at the level of clearance and program access required for the position in the future.