Senior PHP Developer (Hybrid) (PTA)

DataFin; Centurion, Pretoria; On-site; ZAR 700,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

A tech company in Centurion is seeking a skilled Laravel Developer to join their engineering team. In this critical role, you will build scalable PHP applications and maintain APIs for mobile platforms. The ideal candidate has over 5 years of experience in PHP and Laravel, expertise in real-time systems, and strong database skills. This position offers an opportunity to mentor junior developers and contribute to innovative solutions.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of PHP backend experience, preferably with Laravel.
• Experience with real-time socket systems like WebSockets or gRPC.
• Strong skills in designing APIs and database management.

Responsibilities

• Build scalable PHP applications using Laravel.
• Maintain and evolve APIs that support mobile applications.
• Implement real-time features and lead integration efforts.
• Mentor junior developers and standardize practices.

Skills

PHP backend development

Laravel

Real-time socket systems

RESTful APIs

PostgreSQL

Redis

Kubernetes

Docker

Tools

Bitbucket CI/CD

Job description

Overview

Join a High-Impact Development Team Working on Scalable, Modern Web Platforms. They are an experienced Laravel Developer to join their core engineering team working on a national-scale emergency response dispatch platform used across mobile and web interfaces. This is a key role for someone who enjoys solving real-world challenges, owning technical delivery, and mentoring a fast-growing team. You’ll work across their backend stack, contribute to system architecture, and lead the implementation of complex features – including real-time socket integrations, webhook-driven workflows, and mobile coordination.

Responsibilities

• Build scalable PHP applications using Laravel (they run both 6.x and 12.x projects)
• Maintain and evolve RESTful and gRPC APIs that support their Android (Kotlin) and iOS (Objective-C) apps
• Implement real-time features using sockets (WebSockets and gRPC bi-directional streams)
• Lead the design and integration of webhook-based systems (both hosted and third-party)
• Optimise PostgreSQL queries, manage queue workers, and use Redis for caching and job orchestration
• Work on infrastructure-as-code, deployment and scaling via Kubernetes and Bitbucket CI/CD on AWS
• Mentor junior developers and help standardise development practices and architectural decisions
• Collaborate on upcoming features like IoT data feeds, PTT (Push-to-Talk), and live video stream integrations
• Contribute to debugging cross-platform issues, performance tuning, and incident response

Qualifications

• 5+ years of PHP backend experience, with solid Laravel knowledge (preferably across LTS versions)
• Experience building and integrating real-time socket-driven systems (e.g. WebSockets or gRPC)
• Proven ability to design scalable, secure REST and event-driven APIs
• Strong database skills (PostgreSQL preferred, bonus if you've used PostGIS)
• Proficiency with Redis (queueing, caching), Docker, and CI/CD workflows
• Exposure to webhook architectures (creating and consuming), and handling external service integrations
• An eye for performance and maintainability, especially across large-scale deployments
• Bonus: experience with PTT, live video/audio feeds, IoT data streaming or BLE integrations
• Bonus: experience improving legacy platforms or introducing developer process/tooling improvements

Attributes

• Proactive mindset and strong problem-solving skills