Principal Configuration and Data Engineer

Are you a configuration expert who would like to oversee an expanding portfolio of world class Mission Critical and Flight Safety Involved Systems deployed across land, sea and air domains? Our Design Integrity function is seeking a Principal Configuration and Data Engineer to join our thriving team. Working across our Customer Support and Service Solutions (CS3) business area, you will be responsible for supporting internal Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) and for defining, implementing and maintaining the Configuration Management process across the full lifecycle of aerospace, civil and defence programmes, ensuring all product baselines are defined in accordance with contractual, regulatory and company standards throughout the product lifecycle.

This role is working on a hybrid basis and can be based near our following sites: Bristol, Edinburgh, Luton, Southampton, Newcastle, Basildon, or Lincoln.

• Ensuring the integrity and traceability of all configuration items (CIs) across hardware, software, and documentation.
• Identification, agreement, and control of Configuration Items in alignment with programme and regulatory requirements.
• Creation, maintenance and oversight of configuration management plans, including baselines, updates, and change implementation plans.
• Ensuring compliance with the Five Pillars of Configuration Management and all relevant aerospace and defence standards.
• Configuration Identification – defining, documenting, and controlling CIs, baselines (Functional, Allocated, Product, As‑Built, As‑Maintained), and their relationships in PLM systems.
• Configuration Control – managing changes via First Pass Filters (FPF), Configuration Control Boards (CCB), and Configuration Implementation Boards (CIB) to ensure structured, compliant change approval and embodiment.
• Configuration Status Accounting (CSA) – capturing, maintaining, and reporting CI status, change records, and KPIs, providing actionable intelligence to the Line of Business.
• Configuration Audits – planning and participating in Functional Configuration Audits (FCA), Physical Configuration Audits (PCA), and internal/supplier audits to verify conformity between design, production, and documentation.
• Configuration Planning & Governance – create and maintain the Configuration Management Plan (CMP) helping to ensure CM governance aligns with programme and contractual obligations.

• Extensive experience in configuration and change control within defence, aerospace, or similarly regulated industries.
• Demonstrated authority in configuration governance, baseline management, and change control.
• Experience assuring and reviewing Configuration Management Plans.
• Advanced user and subject‑matter expert in TCU.
• Proven experience supporting regulatory, customer, and internal audits.
• Experience working with classified and export‑controlled information.
• Ideally Experience across multiple programme phases (development, production, in‑service).
• Ideally Knowledge of airworthiness, safety‑critical systems, or certification frameworks.
• Ideally Experience defining organisational CM policy or frameworks.

This is not an exhaustive list, and we are keen to hear from you even if you might not have experience in all the above. The most important skill is a good attitude and willingness to learn.

This role is subject to pre‑employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, which could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV).

• Time to Recharge – Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi‑days each year.
• Secure Your Future – Benefit from our award‑winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
• Your Wellbeing Matters – Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee‑led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).
• Rewarding Performance – All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.
• Never Stop Learning – Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.
• Refer a Friend – Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.
• Tailored Perks – Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.
• Flexible Working – Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part‑time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website. Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know. Be part of something bigger – apply now!

Primary Location: GB – Luton – Cap. Green 300 Additional Locations: GB – Basildon, GB – Bristol Building, GB – Edinburgh, GB – Lincoln, GB – Newcastle, GB – Southampton Contract Type: Employee‑Permanent Hybrid Working: Hybrid