Senior WordPress Engineer (AU Media, Homebased)

Work Setup: Homebased/Fully Remote
Schedule: Monday - Friday (06:00 AM - 03:00 PM PHT)

What you'll be doing?
  
Technical Delivery
  

• Build and maintain custom themes, plugins, and Gutenberg blocks (ACF and native) on Express (WordPress multisite on WP Engine behind CloudFront) using OOP, SOLID principles, and component-based architecture.
• Solve complex platform engineering problems across 16+ brand sites—including block and theme architecture, caching, database health, and third-party script performance cost.
• Deliver Core Web Vitals improvements across the portfolio (LCP, INP, CLS) through critical CSS, image and font optimization, hero preloading, script deferral, and reserved ad slot space.
• Plan and execute platform configuration fixes—security rules, CloudFront and WP Engine caching, and database health—without requiring a full replatform.
• Diagnose the root causes of performance bottlenecks (slow TTFB, uncached responses, long main-thread tasks, layout shifts) using CrUX field data, waterfalls, and browser dev tools.
• Trace ad-experience defects reported from screen recordings (e.g., full-viewport ads, sticky units that fail to refresh) back to their root cause in the theme, GPT/Prebid configuration, or CMS.
• Build and extend custom REST endpoints (WP_REST_Controller) and integrations with Piano, Segment, Google Ad Manager, and third-party platforms.
• Deliver Piano Composer/Zephr dynamic, personalized paywalls, building on existing Piano login and membership integrations.
• Implement video player products across digital platforms.
• Profile slow MySQL queries, WP-Cron behavior, and plugin footprint across the multisite to optimize database performance and overall stability.
• Deliver WordPress core upgrades, security patches, and platform roadmap items with automated tests (Jest, Vitest, or Playwright) and CI/CD pipelines across development, staging, and production environments.
• Provide production support for Express—monitoring traffic, responding to incidents, conducting root-cause analysis, and liaising with WP Engine on hosting and performance issues.

Strategy & Cross-functional Leadership

• Own technical standards for Express—establishing theme/plugin architecture guidelines, Gutenberg block development patterns, PHPCS coding standards, performance budgets, and code review processes.
• Own technical standards for Express—establishing theme/plugin architecture guidelines, Gutenberg block development patterns, PHPCS coding standards, performance budgets, and code review processes.
• Mentor WordPress developers on PHP, React, block development, performance optimization, and debugging techniques, leading code reviews for high-risk changes.
• Work closely with the Lead Developer to scope, estimate, and sequence platform work across all 16 brand sites.
• Represent WordPress engineering in the AdTech working group on ad density, layout shifts, tag governance, and slot taxonomy/GPID initiatives alongside the Data team.
• Translate Audience, AdTech, and Content requirements (e.g., mobile ad experience, paywall activations) into technical specifications and component-driven builds.
• Measure the performance cost of third-party scripts and tags to make technical cases for removing, deferring, or re-sequencing them.
• Stay current on WordPress core, the block editor, browser privacy changes (ITP, third-party cookie restrictions), and AI-assisted engineering tools (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor) to improve daily delivery.

  
What we're looking for?
  
Essential:

• 10+ years of professional web engineering experience, including 5+ years at a senior or lead level.
• 5+ years of hands-on experience with WordPress at scale—multisite environments, custom theme development within component architecture, custom plugin development, and the block editor.
• Proven experience in Custom Gutenberg block development (ACF and native) utilizing React or Vue for interactive editor and front-end components.
• Strong proficiency in PHP (object-oriented, design patterns, DRY, KISS, SOLID principles, custom REST endpoints via WP_REST_Controller, WP-CLI, and WP-Cron).
• Strong proficiency in modern JavaScript, React, and TypeScript, with the ability to read and debug third-party SDK behavior, async loading, and execution order in browser dev tools.
• A solid track record of improving real-user Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS) with measured field results (critical CSS, image optimization, main-thread work, third-party script cost).
• Practical CDN and caching knowledge (Cache-Control, Vary semantics, cache keys, edge vs. origin, and managing cached personalized responses).
• Deep understanding of MySQL schema design and query tuning on high-traffic WordPress multisite databases.
• Hands-on experience with automated testing (Jest, Vitest, or Playwright), Git, coding standards (PHPCS), and CI/CD workflows (e.g., GitHub Actions) managing releases across environments.
• Experience with production support and incident response on high-traffic sites (monitoring, triage, root-cause analysis).
• Experience mentoring developers, leading code reviews, establishing coding standards in an Agile team, and maintaining clear technical documentation.
• Bachelor’s degree in Software Engineering, Computer Science, or a related discipline.

Highly Regarded & Desirable:

• Hands-on experience with digital advertising technology: Google Ad Manager, Prebid or header bidding wrappers, GPT slot lifecycles, lazy loading/refresh rules, and diagnosing browser ad delivery faults.
• Working knowledge of ad operations (line items, targeting, key-values, fill rates, and discrepancy investigations).
  Experience with membership, authentication, and paywall platforms (e.g., Piano, Zephr).
• API integration experience across REST, GraphQL, or SOAP for payments, CRMs, ERPs, and third-party data feeds.
• Exposure to Headless WordPress (WPGraphQL) and Next.js.
• Practical adoption of AI-assisted engineering tools in daily workflows (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor, MCP).
• Exposure to AWS infrastructure (CloudWatch, Lambda, S3), CloudFront Functions, or Lambda@Edge.
• Experience with analytics, tag management, and consent frameworks (GTM, Segment, CMP).
• Background in digital publishing or agency environments managing multi-brand digital properties.

  
Join the awesome team and enjoy these benefits & perks:

• Medical, Dental Coverage and Life insurance from day 1 of employment
• Paid Vacation and Sick Leave (with Quarterly Sick Leave Conversion)
• Competitive salary package and annual appraisal
• Financial Assistance Program
• Mandatory Government Benefits and 13th Month Pay
• Complimentary Sleeping Quarters, Coffee at no cost
• Complimentary Office Fitness and Wellness Facilities at no cost
• Regular Company Events, Work Life Balance, and Career growth opportunities
• Accessible location at the heart of Metro Manila --- the Mega Tower, EDSA

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Equal Employment Statement 
Employment decisions at ConnectOS will be conducted without consideration of factors such as age', race, color, religion, gender, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, and marital status. ConnectOS ensures the full confidentiality of the data it processes.