Job Title: Principal Systems Engineer

Location: Portsmouth - Hybrid 3+ days per week on-site

Role Type: Permanent

Salary: £57,000 depending on experience + 10% bonus

Our client, an established defence firm, require an experienced Principal Systems Engineer to join their multi-disciplined team based in Portsmouth.

Candidates would need to be eligible for UK SC Clearance – 5+ years residency in the UK and right to work (no sponsorship).

As a Principal Systems Engineer you will support the delivery of one or more of the core marine engineering service elements; Design Change Management, Platform Technical Assurance, Material State Management, Obsolescence Management, Specialist Engineering Support, Future Support and Transformation Planning.

What the role of the Principal Systems Engineer entails:

Some of the main duties of the Principal Systems Engineer will include:

• You will understand the full problem space, surface constraints and emergent behaviours, balance trade-offs (performance, cost, schedule, safety, security), and define clear, testable success criteria.
• Define and maintain how a system works and how they interact; keep interfaces stable; record key decisions and trade-offs; and support bids and concept studies with evidence-based architectures.
• You will work with stakeholders to capture, decompose and agree requirements; set acceptance criteria; maintain end-to-end traceability; and manage change with clear impact assessments.
• You will champion and govern MBSE (Model Based Systems Engineering) to capture system definition, behaviour, structure and interfaces; utilise the necessary toolset (e.g. Enterprise Architect); set modelling standards; keep models and documents in sync; and generate controlled outputs that support design, V&V and compliance.
• You will tailor and work with the engineering lifecycle; when required, plan progressive integration, prepare teams for design and test reviews, and drive verification and validation to achieve on-time, high-quality customer acceptance. Drive and support systems integration activities collaboratively with other WTA disciplines when required.
• You will act as the technical expert for assigned scope; lead technical reviews; follow engineering governance; meet safety and security obligations; and contribute to the evidence needed for assurance and accreditation. Own and deliver concurrent work packages to cost, schedule and quality; define statements of work and technical acceptance; align multi-domain stakeholders; resolve conflicts and issues; and manage technical risks and opportunities.
• You will mentor and coach engineers; promote systems engineering and improve ways of working across Asset Management.