Principal Software Engineer

Principal Software Engineer

We are looking for a skilled Principal Software Engineer with embedded development experience to join our team in El Segundo, CA.

What You Will Do:

• Serve as a senior technical leader responsible for architecting, developing, integrating, and verifying high-reliability embedded and real-time software for advanced aerospace and defense systems. You will provide expert-level guidance across the software lifecycle, influence system architecture decisions, coordinate with hardware and systems teams, and drive technical execution with a high degree of autonomy.
• In this role, you will shape technical solutions for time-critical systems, mentor engineers, lead design reviews, and ensure that delivered software meets performance, scalability, cybersecurity, and safety requirements. You will also help guide long-term program strategy in collaboration with cross-functional engineering and program leadership.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide technical ownership for major embedded software capabilities, leading design, implementation, integration, and verification activities.
• Break down complex technical problems, identify solution paths, and guide teams through execution with minimal oversight.
• Specify and design scalable, maintainable, secure software architectures, ensuring alignment with Cybersecurity, Software Safety, and system-level requirements.
• Develop, optimize, and debug real-time software using FreeRTOS, Zephyr, VxWorks, or similar RTOS environments, including scheduling, semaphores, queues, drivers, and kernel/user space interactions.
• Implement embedded software in C and C++, with additional contributions in Python or assembly when required for low-level tasks, automation, or hardware bring-up.
• Lead system bring-up and integration efforts on ARM-based processor platforms, including peripheral configuration and hardware-software interface alignment.
• Develop clear, complete technical documentation, including specifications, ICDs, architecture diagrams, test plans, verification reports, and user documentation following Raytheon engineering processes.
• Drive testing and validation strategy across unit, integration, hardware-in-the-loop, and full system-level evaluations.
• Apply rigorous SDLC practices, ensuring consistency across planning, design, coding, testing, deployment, and sustainment.
• Lead Agile/Scrum activities, refine requirements, manage backlogs, and coordinate cross-functional execution.
• Support DevOps and CI/CD adoption, including build automation, pipeline integration, continuous testing, and infrastructure-as-code workflows using GitLab.
• Perform advanced embedded debugging, employing modern tools, methodologies, and ARM-specific workflows for fault isolation and resolution.
• Collaborate with hardware, systems, IV&V, cybersecurity, and program leadership to resolve issues and ensure seamless integration across the system lifecycle.
• Use MagicDraw, GitLab, and other engineering tools to support configuration management, modeling, and systems traceability.

Qualifications You Must Have:

• Typically requires a Bachelor's degree in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) and 8 years of relevant software experience.
• Experience in C and C++, including embedded and real-time development.
• Experience with RTOS (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, VxWorks) including scheduling, drivers, task management, semaphores, and queues.
• Experience using GitLab for version control, CI/CD, or DevOps.
• Active and transferable U.S. Government issued Secret clearance is required prior to start date. U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are eligible for a security clearance.

Qualifications We Prefer:

• Experience developing software for ARM processors, including peripherals and low-level hardware interfaces.
• Experience applying SDLC across multiple software phases.
• Experience with Agile/Scrum processes.
• Experience designing software architecture for high-performance, safety-critical, or security-critical systems.
• Experience with Python or assembly for embedded functionality, test automation, or hardware initialization.
• Experience generating or reviewing technical documentation: ICDs, requirements, architecture specs, or test plans.
• Experience with MagicDraw or model-based systems engineering tools.
• Experience developing automated test pipelines or DevOps workflows for embedded systems.
• Experience coordinating across hardware, systems, and cybersecurity teams, including customer-facing technical discussions.
• Strong communication, leadership, mentoring, and technical review abilities.

What We Offer:

• The RTX Employee Scholar Program pays for tuition, academic fees and books for undergraduate and graduate study at approved educational institutions
• 401(k) plan that offers a broad range of investment options. For eligible employees, we will match up to 4% of your savings to help you build financial security
• Flexible work schedules and paid time off to accommodate work/life balance including many with every other Friday off