Senior Laravel Developer - PHP Backend Architecture & API Scalability

We are looking for a Senior Laravel Developer to support a focused architecture and implementation engagement for an existing SaaS web application. The goal is to review the current Laravel/PHP backend, identify architectural and performance risks, and help us define and implement the most valuable technical improvements. This is not a basic bug-fixing task. We need an experienced Laravel backend developer who can evaluate the system as a whole, make practical architecture decisions, and clearly explain the trade-offs behind their recommendations. Scope of Work           Review the existing Laravel application architecture and backend structure Evaluate service boundaries, business logic organization, and code maintainability Review Eloquent ORM usage, database schema, indexes, and query performance Assess REST API design, API integrations, validation, and error handling Review authentication, authorization, roles, and permissions Evaluate Redis caching, Laravel queues, jobs, events, and Horizon configuration Identify scalability, security, reliability, and performance bottlenecks Recommend an improved backend architecture and technical roadmap Implement or prototype selected high-priority architectural improvements Provide concise technical documentation and next-step recommendations Required Experience            Strong production experience with PHP and Laravel Laravel backend architecture and scalable web application development REST API development and third-party API integration MySQL and PostgreSQL database design and optimization Laravel Eloquent ORM, migrations, queues, events, and caching Redis and Laravel Horizon Authentication and authorization using Laravel Sanctum or Passport SaaS application development Performance optimization and application security Git-based development workflows Docker and production deployment experience Nice to Have      Multi-tenant SaaS architecture AWS infrastructure experience CI/CD pipeline configuration Stripe or other payment gateway integrations Experience with Vue.js, Livewire, Inertia.js, or Laravel Nova The initial engagement will be a focused architecture sprint. Follow-up implementation work may be available depending on the findings and recommendations. Please briefly describe a Laravel SaaS application or backend architecture that you have previously reviewed, designed, or significantly improved.