Staff Integration & Test Engineer (SME) (26-424)

Northrop Grumman•Colorado Springs, CO

5d•$133,000 - $199,600•Onsite

About The Position

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—Missile Defense Integration offers an excellent opportunity for a Staff Integration & Test Engineer (SME) (26-424) to join our team of skilled and diverse professionals. Based in Colorado Springs, CO, this role is essential to supporting the U.S. President, the Secretary of Defense, and combatant commanders at the strategic, regional, and operational levels. This position does not provide relocation assistance and requires on-site work with no remote options. Position Overview: The Command and Control, Battle Management, and Communications (C2BMC) program is an essential part of the Missile Defense System (MDS). It provides a critical operational platform that enables the U.S. President, the Secretary of Defense, and Combatant Commanders at strategic, regional, and tactical levels to systematically plan missile defense operations, monitor battle progress, and actively control networked sensors and weapon systems to achieve global and regional mission objectives. C2BMC provides layered missile defense capabilities, delivering an optimized response to threats across all ranges and flight phases. It acts as a force multiplier by connecting, integrating, and synchronizing autonomous sensor and weapon systems and operations—both worldwide and locally—to improve overall performance. Additionally, C2BMC is a key component of all ground and flight tests that verify and demonstrate the missile defense system's current and future capabilities. The successful candidate will join the C2BMC Regional Applications Analysis team and work directly with the C2BMC Chief Analyst. This role is ideal for a seasoned missile defense systems integrator and mission analyst who brings deep BMDS domain knowledge, a proven history of integration and test leadership across real-world operations and MDA-sponsored events, and a track record of mentoring the next generation of analysts. As a Senior Analyst and Systems Integration SME, you will lead the integration, test, verification, and mission performance analysis of C2BMC regional applications. You will serve as a trusted technical authority across engineering teams, test ranges, Warfighter organizations, and DoD stakeholders—translating complex system behavior into clear, actionable findings that drive corrective action and inform program decisions.

Requirements

A Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Physics, or a related field from an accredited university, along with 12 years of experience; or a Master’s degree (preferred) in a related field with 10 years of relevant work experience; or 16 years of relevant work experience may be considered as an alternative to a degree
Applicants must have a current, active in-scope Government-issued Secret security clearance at the time of application, which is required to start with the ability to be cleared at Top Secret clearance
Generally, 8+ years of related experience, with significant progressive experience in systems integration, test, and analysis of complex, defense-grade command and control (C2), sensor, or weapon systems (missile defense experience strongly preferred)
Proven record of producing authoritative integration, test, and analysis reports for large-scale, real-time systems, including performance, reliability, functional behavior, throughput, and latency
Hands-on proficiency operating in UNIX/Linux environments (including IBM AIX) at the command line
Working proficiency with a scripting or data analysis language (e.g., Python, MATLAB, or comparable), including the ability to convert manual analysis methods into automated tools
Experience with Agile development and collaboration tools such as JIRA, Bitbucket, FishEye, and Crucible
Excellent analytical abilities with strong attention to detail and a commitment to reliability and quality
Understanding of systems and software engineering processes, principles, and lifecycles
Superior written and oral communication skills, with a proven ability to brief senior military officials, Warfighters, and technical peers on system behavior, anomalies, and analysis results
Demonstrated mentorship of junior engineers and the ability to influence decisions in a fast-paced environment

Nice To Haves

Applicants with a current, active in-scope Government-issued Top Secret security clearance at the time of application are highly desired
Applicants with current, active Government-Issued 8140 certification at IAT Level II or higher (such as Security+ CE, CCNA-Security, CySA+, CND, etc.) at the time of application are highly desired. The candidate is responsible for maintaining their 8140 certifications throughout the entire contract period
In-depth, hands-on experience with the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) Fire Control (GFC) product or comparable missile defense battle management/fire control architectures
Experience supporting real-world operations, MDA-sponsored flight and ground tests, and Warfighter training, exercise, and certification events
Experience with BMDS System Track (BST) functionality and distributed/integrated ground test events
Experience designing scenarios in a distributed training architecture and managing distributed training exercises with internal and external command components
Familiarity with CORBA Interface Definition Language (IDL) and distributed, real-time system interfaces
Experience developing or contributing to automated assessment tools, parsers, and data-reduction pipelines
Experience applying earned value management (EVM) methodologies or improving requirements traceability
Exposure to secure DevSecOps practices and CI/CD pipelines (e.g., GitLab, Jenkins)
Prior U.S. military or intelligence experience related to air, missile, and space domains, including threat analysis and aircrew training support

Responsibilities

Serve as a Systems Integrator and Analyst for C2BMC regional applications, performing first-line troubleshooting and deep-dive root cause analysis of issues encountered during integration, operations, test, and training events
Support developers through investigation, problem resolution, and test verification of Findings, Trouble Reports (TRs), and Change Reports (CRs)
Conduct investigations of uncovered issues in distributed and integrated ground test events demonstrating new BMDS functionality (e.g., System Track and related capabilities)
Produce timeline, performance, throughput, and latency analyses of C2BMC products used in real-world events, MDA-sponsored flight and ground test activities, and Warfighter training events
Develop and execute test verification plans demonstrating software functionality in benchmark and continuous lab environments; use results to assess build health at completion
Plan and execute integration tasks in support of multiple concurrent builds; provide lab demonstrations and workshops of build enhancements to internal and external customers while maintaining system stability and performance
Serve as a primary liaison and Subject Matter Expert (SME) between engineering teams, DoD senior leaders, test ranges, Warfighter organizations, and external partners; facilitate technical interchange meetings, technical reviews, and decision-making forums
Support definition and refinement of Warfighter Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) and Concepts of Operations (CONOPS); design and manage distributed training scenarios and exercises and provide onsite, real-time SME support during Warfighter training runs and crew certifications
Interface with scrum teams, build teams, and lead architects across geographically distributed sites to ensure alignment between mission needs, engineering execution, and test/analysis results
Incorporate manual methods of analysis into automated analysis tools to improve efficiency, repeatability, and data quality
Mentor and coach junior analysts and engineers on system design, behavior characteristics, integration and test processes, and analysis techniques
Contribute to Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) and capture technical risk metrics for program reporting aligned to missile defense acquisition milestones