Laravel is the most popular PHP framework in the world. 500M+ lifetime downloads. Thousands of packages. A developer community that shows up at conferences, in forums, on Twitter, in Discord servers, in every "what framework should I use?" thread on the internet.
But Laravel is more than a framework. It's a complete platform. From choosing a stack, to building an app, to deploying it, monitoring it, and scaling it. Laravel Cloud is our managed PaaS, and enterprise customers moving onto it face a common, stubborn blocker: database migration. We need someone who solves that problem directly.
Why This Job Is Unique
You will be on calls with enterprise customers and you will run the migration with them. Not routing tickets. Not advising from a distance. Actually owning the technical execution alongside the customer - which matters most when we sign a large, impactful contract and need to deliver.
You are picking up a real, ongoing function. There is existing database migration work that needs an owner - including the PlanetScale relationship and recurring ad-hoc requests scattered across channels. You are not starting from zero.
The brief is to build the muscle, not wait for the full menu. Rather than first defining every database we will ever offer, you are the one who develops the function in practice. You’ll be learning what customers need, productising the repeatable parts, and making the case for what comes next.
You will seed what you know. The model is "immediate pain relief, then the whole team gets better." Documentation, runbooks, and lightweight training so Sales, CS and engineering compound on your expertise rather than staying dependent on it.
What the Database Migrations Engineer Will Do
- Execute database migrations with enterprise and Private Cloud customers. Sit on calls, own the technical execution, and deliver successful migrations for customers onboarding to Laravel Cloud - primarily MySQL and Postgres.
- Assume ownership of the PlanetScale relationship and migration work. Take over this function from its current ad-hoc state and run it cleanly and autonomously.
- Productise repeatable migration patterns. Identify the most common downtime-tolerant migrations and package them - documentation, decision logic, edge cases - so they stop being bespoke. We want repeatability over heroics — and with an eye towards eventually bringing that knowledge in-product, whether through documentation, wizards, or self-serve flows, so that product-led customers can benefit too.
- Automate recurring migration requests. Map the one-off requests that surface repeatedly across channels and eliminate the manual effort.
- Own broader app and service migrations in the gaps. Act as a generalist migration resource for application and service migrations onto Private Cloud when database migration work permits.
- Distribute what you learn. Write clearly. Build runbooks. Create reference material that makes Sales, CS and engineering better without making them dependent on you.
- Keep the database offering competitive. Stay close to the market — monitoring what alternatives like PlanetScale, Aurora, and Percona offer in terms of pricing, instance classes, and capabilities. Flag proactively when our offering is out of step with what customers are seeing elsewhere, and advise on what needs to change.
Requirements
What We Are Looking For
- Genuine strength across both MySQL and Postgres. We are deliberately optimising for ~80% capability in each over 100% in one. Database specialists tend to plant a flag, and we need coverage across both camps.
- Direct experience with database migrations in a customer-facing capacity. You have been on the calls, you have run the process alongside engineers and customers, and you are comfortable owning the technical execution rather than advising on it.
- A productisation instinct. You see the repeatable pattern inside bespoke work and know how to package it without over-engineering.
- Strong written and async communication. We are fully remote and documentation is how knowledge compounds.
- Comfort operating in a role where part of the scope is yours to define. There is a clear immediate need, and you will also be shaping what the function looks like from here.
Nice to Have
- Experience at a database tooling or infrastructure company - PlanetScale, Percona, Vitess, or similar
- Experience building tooling or automation around migration workflows
- Familiarity with AWS-based infrastructure or PaaS environments
- Experience with AWS DMS or comparable migration tooling — DMS has a role in certain migrations and prior use is a strong signal of hands-on production database migration experience
- A track record of writing, speaking, or teaching publicly about database topics
- Some familiarity with PHP applications
Benefits
- Work From Home
- Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
- Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)
- Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity)
- Stock Option Plan
