Senior DevOps Engineer wanted for Existing FastAPI Platform

I'm looking for a senior engineer to take an AI-supported learning-design platform from a working local app to a secure, deployed, multi-user product. The codebase is already prepared for this work. You'd be building the production layer. This is a defined, milestone-based engagement, not a rebuild, frontend rewrite, or feature work. The app stays a server-rendered Python/Jinja application. What you'd deliver (high level): - Migrate project data from JSON files into PostgreSQL — a storage seam is already in place — with a validated one-time importer - Authentication + project-based permissions (owner / editor / commenter), enforced at the query layer, plus an audit-log foundation - Containerized deployment with separate staging + production, and HTTPS - Security hardening, including rate limiting on the AI-calling endpoints - CI/CD, structured logging / monitoring, automated backups, and rollback - A secure admin-only data-management / workbook-upload tool - Documentation and a full operational handoff Skills: FastAPI / Python, SQLAlchemy + PostgreSQL, Docker, CI/CD, authentication & application security, and solid DevOps / deployment experience. This role is DevOps-led but requires hands-on FastAPI/SQLAlchemy depth for the data migration and access-control work — candidates strong in only one area are a partial fit. How I work: milestone-based delivery with clear acceptance criteria, each reviewed before moving to the next phase. We'd start with a small paid technical audit that produces the implementation plan and per-milestone pricing before committing to the full build. Work happens in my repo via clear commits / pull requests; infrastructure, auth, and data-model decisions are proposed with rationale and reviewed first. I value clear written communication and steady, reviewable progress over constant availability — async is fine, with a few hours of overlap with my working hours (US Central - Chicago) for reviews and handoffs. Remote, worldwide. This is a contract engagement; there may be expanded or ongoing work later as the product grows, but none is promised. I have a detailed scope-of-work document with milestone acceptance criteria that I'll share with qualified candidates. See the attached file for more details.