[Remote] Staff Software Engineer - PHP Backend

Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. ServiceTrade is a best-in-class field service management platform that helps commercial fire protection and mechanical service contractors build efficient and growing businesses. They are seeking a Staff Engineer to help evolve their PHP-based backend platform, focusing on architecture, technical strategy, and modernization efforts.ResponsibilitiesOwn and evolve the architecture of our core backend platform: a large PHP/Doctrine monolith with event-driven async processing and CQRS read models, and a growing number of Node microservicesDrive technical strategy for database sharding, read-replica routing, multi-tenant isolation, and schema migration across MySQL shardsLead incremental modernization efforts, including migrating frameworks, extracting services, and adopting modern PHP patterns, while maintaining production stability and velocityDesign and improve our event pipeline: domain events, SQS-based async processing, MongoDB projections, and worker infrastructureMake and document architectural decisions, weighing trade-offs and building consensus across the teamDesign, build, and maintain scalable RESTful APIs and backend services in PHPOwn query performance across sharded MySQL databases: analyze execution plans, design indexing strategies, identify and eliminate slow queries, and optimize Doctrine ORM/DBAL usage to prevent N+1s and unnecessary hydrationLead schema design and migration strategy across shards, balancing normalization, query performance, and operational safetyWrite and optimize complex queries across sharded MySQL databases using Doctrine ORM/DBALBuild and operate MongoDB document models and projections via Doctrine ODMArchitect message-driven workflows: SQS producers/consumers, long-polling workers, idempotency, DLQ/redrive strategies, deduplication, and visibility-timeout tuningImplement and improve caching strategies across APCu, Redis, and query-level caches, including stampede protectionIntegrate with third-party systems (accounting platforms, identity providers, search infrastructure)Own and improve GitHub Actions CI/CD pipelines, covering build, test, and packaging stages with matrix strategies and artifact cachingManage and optimize Docker-based development and CI environments (multi-service Compose stacks, LocalStack for AWS mocking, ephemeral database strategies)Partner with SRE on QA server provisioning, production infrastructure, deployment processes, and observability, contributing CloudFormation changes and monitoring improvements as neededChampion environment parity between development, CI, QA, and productionEnsure new features have appropriate application-level observability and work with SRE to surface metrics, dashboards, and alertsA believer and practitioner in the use of the latest AI tools and concepts to achieve maximum productivityCollaborate with our Principal AI Engineer to champion an 'AI-first' engineering culture, providing the guidance and best practices necessary for the team to use AI as a force multiplier in their daily delivery and modernization effortsUsing AI tools like Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, or similar LLM-based assistants to accelerate code comprehension, refactoring, and the modernization of legacy systemsEnsure proper attention to security, performance, and trustworthiness of AI featuresMentor senior and mid-level engineers through code reviews, pairing, and architectural guidanceRaise the bar on code quality, testing practices, and operational readinessIdentify systemic issues (tech debt, reliability gaps, developer experience friction) and drive solutionsCollaborate with product managers, frontend engineers, QA, and devops to shape the technical approach for major initiativesSkills8+ years of professional software development experience with deep expertise in backend PHPProven track record operating and evolving large, long-lived PHP codebases in production. You've modernized systems, not just built greenfieldExpert-level MySQL knowledge: you can read and tune execution plans, design indexing strategies for complex access patterns, reason about locking behavior, and optimize queries across replicated and sharded databasesDemonstrated experience using tools like Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, or similar LLM-based assistants to accelerate code comprehension, refactoring, and the modernization of legacy systemsMastery of automated testing best practices (TDD, contract testing, spec-oriented testing, and CI/CD integration) using PHPUnit and Jest; a history of coaching teams on how to balance test coverage with developer velocity while maintaining a 'zero-regression' mindsetDeep experience with Doctrine ORM and ODM (entity mapping, repositories, query builder, hydration strategies, proxy generation, N+1 prevention, lazy/eager loading trade-offs)Strong production experience with MongoDB (document modeling, aggregation pipelines, ODM tooling)Extensive hands-on experience with AWS: CloudFormation/Terraform, EC2, RDS, S3, SQS, SES, Lambda, ElastiCache, VPC networking, IAM policiesStrong experience designing and operating asynchronous processing systems (SQS or equivalent), including worker supervision, DLQ strategies, idempotency, backoff/jitter, and visibility-timeout managementProduction experience with Redis for caching, session management, and distributed lockingStrong Docker and Docker Compose skills for development, CI, and packaging workflowsExperience building and maintaining CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions preferred)Working knowledge of AWS services (EC2, RDS, S3, SQS, SES, Lambda, ElastiCache, VPC networking) sufficient to troubleshoot, contribute infrastructure-as-code changes, and collaborate effectively with SREDemonstrated ability to lead technical initiatives, make architectural trade-offs, and influence without authorityExcellent written and verbal communication skills; comfortable producing technical documentation and RFCsExperience modernizing large PHP monoliths: incrementally migrating frameworks, extracting services, or evolving architecture while maintaining production stabilityExperience with CQRS and event-sourcing patternsFamiliarity with Typesense, Elasticsearch, or similar search infrastructureExperience with Auth0 or other identity/SSO platforms and patternsExperience with configuration management (Puppet, Ansible) or infrastructure automationFamiliarity with Kinesis, CloudWatch, or other AWS observability toolingExperience with static analysis tools (Psalm) and automated refactoring (Rector)Familiarity with frontend frameworks (React, Ember.js), enough to collaborate effectively with frontend engineersExperience with serverless patterns (AWS Lambda, SAM)Background in multi-tenant SaaS architecture and data isolation strategiesBenefitsMedical through Cigna, PPO and HDHP options, including a Health Savings Account with company contributions Dental and Vision through UnumFlexible Spending Account and Dependant Care AccountCompany-paid Life insurance, STD and LTDVoluntary benefits including Supplemental Life Insurance, Critical Illness, Accident and Pet Insurance401(k) with up to 3% employer match and NO vesting periodFlexible PTO policy10 company holidaysParental LeavePaid Time Off for VolunteeringEmployee Reimbursement Program to use for well-being, technology and/or professional developmentCompany OverviewServiceTrade offers mobile and web apps for maintenance businesses to deliver more service calls and connect with their customers. It was founded in 2012, and is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, USA, with a workforce of 201-500 employees. Its website is http://servicetrade.com.