Submeter

Mid-Level WordPress Developer – Media & Publishing

Lisboa

Descrição da posição

Our client is a leading media group with a portfolio of online and print newspapers and magazines. We are committed to delivering high-quality journalism and engaging digital experiences to our growing subscriber base.

We are seeking a skilled WordPress Developer to stabilize and enhance our digital platforms, ensuring reliable performance and improved user retention.

Job Summary:

As a Mid-Level WordPress Developer, you will take ownership of our WordPress-based news and magazine websites, focusing on stability, performance, and subscriber experience. You will troubleshoot critical issues, implement robust fixes, and propose proactive improvements to reduce downtime and churn. With deep expertise in WordPress (PHP), JavaScript, and SQL, you will work closely with editorial, product, and design teams to deliver seamless digital publishing solutions. This role requires fluent Portuguese and strong English, with regular in-person collaboration in Lisbon.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Diagnose and resolve website instability issues (crashes, slow loading, plugin conflicts, database errors).
  • Maintain and optimize WordPress core, themes, and custom plugins (especially client-specific customizable plugins).
  • Write clean, secure, and performant PHP, JavaScript, and SQL code to support high-traffic media sites.
  • Perform database optimization (MySQL/MariaDB) – indexing, query tuning, cleanup of redundant data.
  • Implement caching strategies (object, page, CDN) and performance monitoring to ensure fast load times.
  • Collaborate with editorial teams to support content workflows, dynamic content rendering, and personalized subscriber experiences.
  • Propose and implement UX/UI and technical improvements to reduce subscriber drop-off and increase engagement.
  • Manage deployments, backups, and rollback procedures to minimize downtime.
  • Conduct code reviews and mentor junior developers when needed.
  • Stay updated on WordPress security best practices and apply patches promptly.

Requirements

Requirements:

Experience:

  • 3–5 years of hands-on experience with WordPress development (PHP) in production environments.
  • Proven track record working on high-traffic media websites (news portals, magazines, journals).
  • Demonstrated ability to resolve critical stability issues under pressure (e.g., site crashes, subscriber access failures).
  • Experience with custom WordPress plugins and theme development.

Technical Skills (Mandatory):

  • WordPress (PHP) – deep knowledge of hooks, filters, WP_Query, REST API, and plugin architecture.
  • JavaScript (ES6+) – DOM manipulation, event handling, async operations.
  • SQL – writing and optimizing complex queries, database schema management.
  • Proficiency with customizable WordPress plugins and debugging plugin conflicts.
  • Solid understanding of web performance (Core Web Vitals, LCP, CLS, TTFB).


Nice-to-Have Skills:

  • jQuery (for legacy support and rapid DOM fixes).
  • React or React Native – for progressive web enhancements or companion apps.
  • Laravel – for custom backend tools or API integrations.
  • Experience with mobile-responsive design and PWA implementation.
  • Familiarity with Structured templates or native WordPress block themes (Gutenberg).


Language Skills:

  • Fluent Portuguese (spoken and written) – mandatory for daily collaboration with local teams and stakeholders.
  • Professional working proficiency in English – required for documentation, vendor communication, and technical alignment.

Soft Skills:

  • Strong problem-solving mindset with a focus on root cause analysis.
  • Proactive attitude – able to suggest improvements beyond bug fixes.
  • Excellent communication to explain technical issues to non-technical stakeholders (editors, marketing).
  • Comfortable working in a fast-paced media environment with tight deadlines.

Location & Availability:

  • Based in Portugal with ability to attend the Lisbon office 3–4 times per month (hybrid).

Nice-to-Have:

  • Experience with CDN integration (Cloudflare, Fastly), WP Rocket, or Redis/Object Caching.
  • Knowledge of SEO best practices for media sites (schema markup, AMP, sitemaps).
  • Familiarity with subscription platforms (e.g., Piano, LaterPay, Memberful) or paywall logic.
  • Basic DevOps skills (Docker, CI/CD, WP CLI, Git workflows).

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