Senior Backend Developer

Hours and location

This is a full-time role based in Leeds, UK. We offer hybrid working and flexible hours to everyone in the team, but this is not a fully remote opportunity.

Benefits package

As part of our commitment to making Engage a great place to work, we’ve built a comprehensive benefits package that fuels our thriving culture and delivers an exceptional, well-rounded employee experience. Some of our most popular perks are:

• 25 days holiday + bank holidays (rising after 5 years)
  
• Company Performance linked bonus scheme (this is depending on the business’ performance and is not a contractual benefit)
• Comprehensive Private Health Insurance
• 5% company pension scheme
• Access to your own financial coach
• A company culture that promotes work-life balance
• Access to mental health support
• Free on-site gym
• Structured personal development and progression facilitated by our People Development and Culture Team
• An award-winning office designed for hybrid working
• Your birthday off
• Regular socials, epic Summer parties and more…

What we’re looking for

We’re growing our team and seeking a senior backend developer with expertise in marketing websites and Craft CMS. This role involves taking a leadership position in planning, implementing, and managing web projects while ensuring an excellent author experience. You’ll lead technical approaches, mentor developers, and actively support business development initiatives.

You’ll have:

• 5+ years of digital agency experience
• Comprehensive knowledge of PHP
• Strong experience with Craft CMS or an equivalent, from control panel customisation to templating
• Proven ability to design scalable content models and front-end data structures
• Confidence in independently handling client communication and requirements gathering
• A knack for leading complex projects and mentoring technical team members

Key responsibilities:

• Define and deliver technical strategies for complex, high-value projects
• Provide accurate and comprehensive cost/time estimates for discovery, production, and retainer work
• Lead technical project specifications and documentation
• Ensure high-quality, maintainable code following best practices
• Manage multiple projects, effectively balancing priorities across fast-paced client accounts
• Act as a key technical advisor, both internally and externally, challenging and refining requirements as needed
• Champion the adoption of emerging technologies and contribute to R&D activities
• Monitor system uptime and manage proactive fixes for production errors
• Mentor and empower other developers, fostering growth and technical expertise
• Collaborate with the business development team by preparing technical input for sales decks, attending client pitches, and providing pre-sales ballpark estimates
• Identify technical opportunities during discovery phases to enhance the delivery of client projects

Bonus points for any experience:

• Extending Craft CMS with custom modules, leveraging the Yii framework
• Advanced knowledge of Laravel, Vue.js, and Tailwind CSS
• Experience with AWS, SQL, and Docker

A bit about us

Established in 2007 we’ve earned a reputation for consistently delivering world-class digital products and strategies. We call this Attention to digital™

We also have a strong sense of wanting to do the right thing - not just in digital, but our impact on the world too. That’s why we’re proud to be a Certified B Corporation™

Want to get to know us a little better? Why not take a tour of our office, meet the team or browse some of our work and case studies.