Product Engineer, Backend

Kinship; Greater London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading tech company in Central London is seeking a backend-focused engineer to build backend services and APIs using modern PHP. You will collaborate with product and design teams and utilize Docker and AWS for reliable software deployment. Ideal candidates will have solid PHP experience, familiarity with containerized environments, and a product mindset. Join a no-BS team that values work-life balance and offers real influence over product decisions.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Beautiful office in central London

Real autonomy and influence

Work-life balance

Qualifications

• Strong experience with PHP (we use PHP 8+).
• Familiarity with containerized environments using Docker.
• Clear communicator and thoughtful collaborator.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain backend services in modern PHP.
• Design and implement APIs consumed by our frontend and desktop apps.
• Use Docker to standardize development and streamline deployments.

Skills

PHP

Docker

AWS

API design

Laravel or Symfony

CI/CD

Job description

Crafting the kind of backend that makes frontend work feel like cheating

Hey there — we’re Kinship 👋

We’re building the Revit tools you wish existed. Our platform helps architects and engineers manage content, track usage, and make smarter decisions with less hassle.

We’re looking for a backend-focused engineer who enjoys building clean APIs, designing resilient systems, and keeping things fast, simple, and secure. Someone who’s comfortable working in PHP, knows their way around Docker, and can help us make the most of AWS to ship reliable software at speed.

What You'll Do

• Build and maintain backend services in modern PHP
• Design and implement APIs consumed by our frontend and desktop apps
• Use Docker to standardize development and streamline deployments
• Work with AWS services (e.g. ECS, S3, RDS, CloudWatch) to keep our systems fast and reliable
• Collaborate with product, design, and other engineers to ship features
• Write tests and monitor performance so we can trust our stack at scale

What We're Looking For

You don’t need to tick every box, but here’s what would help you succeed:

• Strong experience with PHP (we use PHP 8+)
• Familiarity with containerized environments using Docker
• Product mindset — you think in terms of user value, not just technical correctness
• Clear communicator and thoughtful collaborator
• Someone who’s excited to work in a small, fast-moving team
• Knowledge of Laravel or Symfony
• Comfortable with AWS basics — think deploying apps, storing files, managing databases
• Experience designing or evolving APIs in production
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines
• Interest in DevOps, observability, or developer tooling

What We Offer

• Competitive salary
• A beautiful, plant-filled office in central London (by Southwark tube station) and good coffee (obviously)
• A no-BS team of people who love building great software together
• Real autonomy and influence over product and tech decisions
• A company that believes in work-life balance