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Senior Principal Engineer Jobs in Highlands Ranch, CO

This Principal Engineer will lead the design and implementation of these AI-driven systems while ... Mentor senior engineers and raise engineering standards across multiple development teams. * Lead ...

Principal Engineer

Denver, CO · On-site

$220K - $250K/yr

This Principal Engineer will lead the design and implementation of these AI-driven systems while ... Mentor senior engineers and raise engineering standards across multiple development teams. * Lead ...

This Principal Engineer will lead the design and implementation of these AI-driven systems while ... Mentor senior engineers and raise engineering standards across multiple development teams. * Lead ...

Senior Principal Systems Engineer Onsite Location: Aurora, CO Required: TS/SCI Clearance No 1099, No third parties, no C2C, No Visas or Green Cards No exceptions (Sorry) W2 Hourly Contract Only $90 ...

Senior Principal Systems Engineer Onsite Location: Aurora, CO Required: TS/SCI Clearance No 1099, No third parties, no C2C, No Visas or Green Cards No exceptions (Sorry) W2 Hourly Contract Only $90 ...

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Senior Principal Engineer information

See Highlands Ranch, CO salary details

$86.1K

$163.1K

$225.1K

How much do senior principal engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 30, 2026, the average yearly pay for senior principal engineer in Highlands Ranch, CO is $163,141.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $131,700.00 and $181,600.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a senior principal engineer?

A Senior Principal Engineer is a highly experienced technical leader who is responsible for guiding the overall engineering direction and strategy within an organization. They typically possess deep expertise in their field, provide mentorship to other engineers, and influence major architectural and technical decisions. Senior Principal Engineers often collaborate with cross-functional teams, ensure best practices are followed, and play a critical role in driving innovation. Their work has a significant impact on the company's products and technical vision.

What does a senior principal engineer do?

Senior Principal Engineers often serve as technical leaders on cross-functional projects, collaborating closely with product managers, architects, and development teams to define technical direction and ensure architectural consistency. They provide deep expertise to solve complex engineering challenges, mentor other engineers, and help align project goals with the organization's strategic vision. Their role frequently involves facilitating communication between different departments and ensuring technical decisions support both immediate project needs and long-term scalability.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a senior principal engineer?

To excel as a Senior Principal Engineer, you need deep technical expertise in your engineering discipline, advanced problem-solving abilities, and typically a bachelor's or master's degree in engineering or a related field. Proficiency with industry-standard design and simulation software, project management tools, and relevant certifications (such as PMP or PE) are often required. Exceptional leadership, strategic thinking, and strong communication skills distinguish top performers in this role. These competencies are vital for leading complex projects, driving innovation, and effectively guiding engineering teams to achieve organizational goals.

What is the difference between Senior Principal Engineer vs Lead Engineer?

AspectSenior Principal EngineerLead Engineer
CredentialsTypically requires a bachelor's or master's degree in engineering, with extensive industry experienceSimilar educational background, often with additional certifications or specialized training
Work EnvironmentFocuses on high-level technical strategy, innovation, and mentorship across projectsLeads specific projects or teams, overseeing technical execution and coordination
Industry UsageCommon in large corporations and R&D settingsFound in both startups and established companies, often in project-based roles

While both roles require strong technical expertise, the Senior Principal Engineer typically focuses on strategic technical leadership and innovation at an organizational level, whereas the Lead Engineer manages project execution and team coordination. The Senior Principal Engineer often operates at a higher, more strategic level within the engineering hierarchy.

What are popular job titles related to Senior Principal Engineer jobs in Highlands Ranch, CO?

For Senior Principal Engineer jobs in Highlands Ranch, CO, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What cities near Highlands Ranch, CO are hiring for Senior Principal Engineer jobs?

Cities near Highlands Ranch, CO with the most Senior Principal Engineer job openings:

Infographic showing various Senior Principal Engineer job openings in Highlands Ranch, CO as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 87% Full Time, 8% Part Time, and 5% Contract. Highlights an 86% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 9% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $163,141 per year, or $78.4 per hour.

Principal/Sr. Principal DevOps Engineer (AHT)

Aurora, CO • On-site


Northrop Grumman Corp. (AU)
Space Research Administration • 10K+ employees

8.2

Company rating: 8.2 out of 10

Based on 367 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

84th of 545 rated manufacturers

People enjoy working here

Good employer

Recommended by students


$114 - $213/hr

Other

Medical, Life, PTO

Posted 13 days ago


Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Polygraph

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.

The Northrop Grumman’s Space Systems Sector is looking for an experienced Principal Or Sr. Principal DevOps Engineer to augment our team. This position can be based in Aurora, CO OR Morrisville, NC.

Primary Responsibilities
  • Responsible for planning and evolving processes and infrastructure to execute programs supporting rapid capability maturation and deployment.
  • Integrates development pipelines leveraging automation with test-driven development tools and continuous integration/test frameworks.
  • Define and implement the build, deployment, provisioning, and monitoring standards for the program.
  • Ensures implementation of Software Configuration Management (SCM), code quality, and code coverage with automated testing for Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipelines.
  • Work as part of an Agile development team to deliver end-end automation of deployment, monitoring, and infrastructure management framework.
  • Build and configure delivery environments supporting CD/CI tools using an Agile delivery methodology.
  • Create scripts and/or templates to automate infrastructure provisioning and management tasks.
  • Work closely with development teams to create an automated continuous integration (CI) and continuous delivery (CD) system.
  • Work together with vendors and other IT personnel for problem resolution
  • Monitor and support all installed systems and infrastructure.
  • Develop custom scripts to increase system efficiency and lower the human intervention time on any tasks.
  • Contribute to the design of information and operational support systems.
  • Install, configure, test and maintain operating systems, application software and system management tools.
  • Oversee the company’s security, backup, and redundancy strategies.
  • Evaluate application performance, identify potential bottlenecks, develop solutions, and implement them with the help of developers.

This position can be staffed at a Principal Or Sr. Principal level, based on the basic qualifications below.

Basic Qualifications
  • Must have an active U.S. Government Top Secret security clearance at time of application, current and within scope, with the ability to obtain and maintain SCI approval/access.
  • Must have an active U.S. Government CI Polygraph at time of application, current and within scope.
  • Principal: Bachelor’s degree with 5 + years of relevant experience; 3 years with a Master's; 0 years with a PhD; or 9 additional years of experience in lieu of a degree.
  • Sr. Principal: Bachelor’s degree with 8 + years of relevant experience; 6 years with a Master's; 4 years with a PhD; or 12 additional years of experience in lieu of a degree
  • Security+, not needed to start, but must be able to obtain within 6 months
  • Administration experience with Linux or related operating systems.
  • Experience in an Agile software development framework
  • Experience with at least 3 of the preferred qualifications
Preferred Qualifications
  • Current Security+ Terraform
  • Kubernetes administration
  • AWS administration
  • Flux
  • Helm
  • DynamoDB
  • NATS configuration
  • Big Bang (Grafana, Prometheus, Loki)
  • Jenkins/GitLab/Bamboo

Primary Level Salary Range: $114,000.00 - $213,000.00

Secondary Level Salary Range: $108,800.00 - $203,600.00

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 http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

Job Category: Engineering

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Northrop Grumman logo

About Northrop Grumman

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

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.

Industry

Space research administration

Company size

10,000+ Employees

Headquarters location

Falls Church, VA, US

Year founded

1939


What Northrop Grumman employees say

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