Sr Principal Network

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be 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.

We are seeking a highly experienced Senior Principal Network Engineer (T4) to join our advanced systems engineering and enterprise infrastructure team. In this role, you will function as a senior technical expert responsible for designing, implementing, securing, and optimizing complex network architectures that support mission-critical operations.

You will support cross-functional engineering efforts, provide deep technical guidance, mentor junior engineers, and ensure our networked systems meet stringent performance, reliability, and cybersecurity requirements. This position requires strong analytical skills, technical leadership, and the ability to operate in a fast-paced, secure environment supporting key stakeholders and high-visibility programs. This position will be located in Roy, Utah and support the Sentinel Program.

Your responsibilities will also include:

• Lead the design, architecture, deployment, and sustainment of large-scale enterprise, tactical, and datacenter networks (LAN/WAN/WLAN).

• Develop high-level and detailed network design documents, topology diagrams, and engineering implementation plans.

• Configure, manage, and optimize technologies including BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, MPLS, VXLAN, EVPN, SD-WAN, and QoS mechanisms.

• Oversee Layer 2/Layer 3 switching and routing infrastructure from vendors such as Cisco, Juniper, Palo Alto, Arista, etc.

• Perform capacity planning, network performance analysis, and advanced troubleshooting for critical infrastructure.

• Implement and validate network security mechanisms including firewalls, IPS/IDS, segmentation, VPN technologies, and compliance with NIST/DoD cybersecurity controls.

• Conduct fault isolation, root-cause analysis, and develop corrective action plans for systemic issues.

• Develop automation scripts and tools (Python, Ansible, Terraform) to improve operational efficiency.

• Maintain configuration baselines, engineering documentation, and lifecycle roadmaps.

• Lead technical reviews, risk assessments, and contribute to proposals, cost estimates, and engineering trade studies.

• Collaborate with program leadership, cybersecurity, systems engineering, software, and operations teams to ensure cohesive network integration and alignment with mission requirements.

• Provide technical mentorship to mid-level and junior engineers, fostering internal growth and knowledge sharing.

• Support 24/7 operational environments as required, including on-call or after-hours support for critical changes or incidents.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or related discipline and 8+ years of network engineering experience; OR

Master’s degree and 4+ years of experience; 4 additional years of related experience may be used in lieu of a degree.

• Expert-level experience with enterprise networking technologies including:

• Routing & switching (Cisco/Juniper/Arista)

• BGP, OSPF, MPLS, VPN, STP, VLANs, trunking

• Layer 2–3 troubleshooting and packet analysis

• Hands-on experience with firewalls and network security technologies (Palo Alto, Cisco ASA/FTD, Juniper SRX, etc.).

• Experience designing and maintaining high-availability environments, redundant architectures, and failover systems.

• Strong understanding of DoD/IC networking requirements, DISA STIGs, encryption devices, and secure transport protocols (modify if non-DoD).

• Ability to develop and maintain detailed technical documentation and architectural artifacts.

• Must be a US Citizen and have an active U.S. security clearance (minimum of [Secret / TS / TS/SCI]), must also have the ability to obtain Special Program Access (SAP) within a reasonable time period.

• Excellent communication skills and the ability to brief senior leadership and technical stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Cisco CCNP, CCIE, Juniper JNCIP/JNCIE, or similar expert-level certifications.

• Experience with SD-WAN solutions, such as Cisco Viptela, Meraki, Fortinet, or Juniper.

• Hands-on experience with network automation (Python, Ansible, Terraform, Postman, REST APIs).

• Background in designing/implementing Zero Trust, microsegmentation, or identity-driven access architectures.

• Experience supporting classified networks, cross-domain solutions, and NIST 800-171/53 compliance.

• Familiarity with virtualization platforms (VMware, KVM), hyperconverged systems, and cloud networking (AWS, Azure GovCloud).

• Experience with monitoring tools such as SolarWinds, Splunk, Elastic, Cisco DNA Center, or equivalent.

• Demonstrated leadership experience in project management, engineering oversight, or technical authority roles.

• Proven ability to architect scalable solutions for multi-site, distributed enterprise environments.

Primary Level Salary Range: $111,700.00 - $167,500.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

Job Category: Information Technology