Principal Configuration Analyst

Northrop Grumman•Mesa, AZ

5d•$81,400 - $122,000•Onsite

About The Position

At Northrop Grumman Defense Systems, we are seeking an experienced Configuration Analyst to support our Armament Systems Business Unit located in Mesa, AZ. Northrop Grumman’s Armament Systems Division site in Mesa, Arizona produces automatic medium caliber gun systems. Northrop Grumman gun systems built for the U.S. and international militaries have been used in all major conflicts since World War II in a variety of applications to include small and large ground vehicles, helicopters, airplanes and naval ships. Position Summary: The Principal Configuration Analyst is a technical and process-focused role responsible for defining, implementing, and maintaining configuration management (CM) processes, tools, and baselines across product, IT, or engineering environments. This role ensures integrity, traceability, and compliance of configuration items (CIs) across the lifecycle, drives cross-functional configuration strategy, and mentors teams on CM best practices. This position is located in Mesa, Arizona.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
5+ years of experience in configuration management, change management, or product lifecycle management roles.
Practical knowledge of configuration management principles (versioning, baselines, item identification, change control, traceability, audits).
Hands-on experience with configuration management and version control tools (e.g., Git, Jira, TCUA). Utilize and manage tools such as Siemens Teamcenter and SharePoint
Excellent verbal and written communication skills; ability to present CM status and recommendations to executive leadership.
Ability to focus on multiple projects with competing priorities.
U.S. Citizen and be able to obtain a DoD Secret Clearance.

Nice To Haves

Certifications such as CMII (Configuration Management II), ITIL Practitioner/Expert, SAFe, or PMP.
Prior experience in regulated industries (aerospace, defense, medical devices, automotive) with audit and compliance requirements.
Strategic thinking and ability to translate strategy into executable CM plans.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; attention to detail.
Process design and continuous improvement mindset.
Risk assessment and mitigation related to configuration changes.
Ability to produce actionable CM metrics and actionable dashboards.

Responsibilities

Develop, own, and continuously improve configuration management policies, processes, and standards to ensure configuration integrity and auditability based on SAE EIA-649 and customer contract requirements.
Define, implement, and maintain configuration baselines for hardware, software, documentation, and related artifacts across multiple projects or product lines.
Job emphasis is placed on planning and coordination of project documentation, such as engineering drawings, production specifications and schedules, and contract modifications, to ensure customer contract requirements are met.
Reviews contracts to determine documentation required for each phase of project, applying knowledge of engineering and manufacturing processes.
Coordinates modification records for management control.
Manages change orders and change authorization documentation.
Reviews and analyses released engineering change data and coordinates changes with engineering, quality control, operations, manufacturing, and engineering data control activities.
Manage configuration management tools (e.g., version control systems, CMDBs, release/configuration tools) and integrate them with CI/CD pipelines and lifecycle tools.
Lead configuration control boards (CCBs) or change review processes; Analyzes proposed changes of product design to determine effect on overall product and system.
Design and enforce traceability from requirements through design, build, test, and release; maintain relationships between configuration items.
Perform or coordinate configuration audits and reviews (functional and physical) and remedy any discrepancies uncovered.
Collaborate with engineering, product management, QA, and supply chain to ensure configuration alignment and readiness for release.
Provide mentorship, training, and guidance to configuration analysts, and cross-functional stakeholders.
Produce CM metrics, dashboards, and reports to demonstrate compliance, stability, and improvement opportunities to senior leadership.
Drive automation to reduce manual CM work (baseline creation, packaging, versioning, deployments) and scale CM practices across the organization.