Senior PHP/CodeIgniter Developer Needed (Full time / Freelancing)

Budget: ₹12500 - ₹37500

About the Role :

We are looking for a highly skilled Senior PHP/CodeIgniter Developer who has hands-on experience managing the complete Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) of a CRM platform. The ideal candidate is a backend powerhouse—someone who thrives on writing clean, optimised database queries, reducing server load, and building systems that scale effortlessly under heavy traffic. You will own the CRM product end-to-end, from requirements gathering and architecture design through deployment and ongoing performance tuning. Key Responsibilities CRM Product Ownership & SDLC Management • Lead the end-to-end development of the CRM application using PHP and the CodeIgniter framework, covering requirements analysis, system design, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance. • Collaborate with stakeholders, business analysts, and project managers to translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions. • Manage release cycles, version control (Git), branching strategies, and CI/CD pipelines to ensure smooth and predictable deployments. • Conduct thorough code reviews, enforce coding standards, and maintain comprehensive technical documentation for the CRM codebase. Backend Development & Architecture • Design and build robust RESTful APIs, microservices, and backend modules within the CodeIgniter MVC architecture. • Architect database schemas, stored procedures, and data models (MySQL/MariaDB) that support complex CRM workflows such as lead management, sales pipelines, customer segmentation, and reporting dashboards. • Implement secure authentication and authorisation mechanisms, role-based access control, and data-encryption strategies. • Integrate third-party services including payment gateways, email/SMS providers, analytics platforms, and ERP systems via APIs and webhooks. Query Optimisation & Server Performance • Profile and optimise slow-running SQL queries using EXPLAIN plans, indexing strategies, query restructuring, and partitioning to achieve sub-second response times on large datasets. • Implement multi-layer caching strategies (Redis, Memcached, opcode caching) to drastically reduce database hits and improve page-load speeds. • Configure and fine-tune web servers (Apache/Nginx), PHP-FPM worker pools, and database connection pooling for maximum throughput with minimal resource consumption. • Monitor server health and application performance using tools such as New Relic, Datadog, or Grafana; proactively identify and resolve bottlenecks before they impact users. • Reduce server footprint through efficient memory management, lazy loading, pagination, background job processing (queues via Redis/RabbitMQ), and asynchronous task handling. Quality Assurance & DevOps • Write unit tests and integration tests (PHPUnit, Codeception) to maintain high code coverage and catch regressions early. • Set up and maintain automated deployment pipelines, containerised environments (Docker), and staging/production server configurations. • Perform load testing and stress testing (JMeter, Locust) to validate system performance under peak-traffic conditions and plan capacity accordingly. Required Skills & Qualifications Technical Expertise • 5+ years of professional experience with PHP (7.4/8.x) and the CodeIgniter framework (CI3/CI4). • Proven track record of managing the complete SDLC of at least one CRM or large-scale SaaS product from inception to production. • Expert-level proficiency in MySQL/MariaDB: advanced joins, subqueries, indexing, query optimisation, replication, and database partitioning. • Deep understanding of server-side performance tuning: PHP-FPM configuration, opcode caching (OPcache), connection pooling, and web-server optimisation (Nginx/Apache). • Strong experience with caching technologies (Redis, Memcached) and message queues (RabbitMQ, Beanstalkd). • Proficiency with Git, CI/CD tools (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI), and containerisation (Docker). • Solid understanding of RESTful API design, OAuth 2.0, JWT authentication, and webhook integrations. Soft Skills & Professional Qualities • Exceptional problem-solving mindset with a performance-first engineering philosophy. • Strong communication skills—ability to explain complex technical decisions to non-technical stakeholders. • Self-driven and proactive; comfortable owning features from concept to delivery without constant supervision. • Experience mentoring junior developers and conducting constructive code reviews. Nice to Have • Experience with frontend technologies (JavaScript, jQuery, Vue.js, or React) for full-stack contribution when needed. • Familiarity with Elasticsearch or similar search engines for fast CRM data retrieval. • Exposure to cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure) and managed database services (RDS, Cloud SQL). • Knowledge of design patterns (Repository, Observer, Strategy) and SOLID principles applied in PHP projects. • Experience with database migration tools and sche