WordPress Developer (Remote)

Compensation: $45 - 50/hr This is a 1 year contract. Important Schedule Note: This position begins as a full-time role (40 hours/week) and will transition to a part-time schedule (20 hours/week) starting in October. We are looking for someone who thrives in a flexible environment and can maintain high output and reliability across both schedule phases. We are seeking an experienced WordPress Developer proficient in PHP, SQL, JavaScript, and Azure to maintain, enhance, and optimize our web applications and infrastructure. Responsibilities Design, build, and maintain custom WordPress themes, plugins, and custom post types ensuring clean, scalable code. Write, optimize, and maintain SQL queries to ensure high performance and data integrity across custom database schemas. Develop dynamic frontend interactions using JavaScript (vanilla ES6+ and modern libraries/frameworks) integrated seamlessly with backend PHP API endpoints. Manage, monitor, and deploy WordPress environments and connected services hosted on Microsoft Azure (App Services, Azure SQL / MySQL, Azure Blob Storage, CDN). Perform regular site updates, performance audits (Core Web Vitals), bug fixes, and security hardening. Work closely with the team during the initial 40 hr/week onboarding period to streamline workflows, document systems, and establish a high-efficiency routine prior to moving to the 20 hr/week schedule. Qualifications 5+ years of experience in custom WordPress theme/plugin development from scratch (not just customizing off-the-shelf themes/builders). Deep understanding of modern PHP standards (OOP, namespace, hooks/filters). Strong ability to write custom MySQL queries and understand database relations. Proficiency in vanilla JS, AJAX, and working with REST APIs / WP REST API. Experience with Microsoft Azure cloud hosting, deployments, and resource management. Proficient with Git and familiar with automated deployment pipelines.