Freelance Developer

Romain Pierre

Symfony Lead Developer

15+ years building robust PHP applications. Specialized in Symfony, API Platform, and cloud infrastructure. Available for freelance missions from Madrid or Paris.

PHP 8PHPSymfony 7SymfonyClaude CodeClaude CodeDockerDockerRedisRedisPostgreSQLPgSQLElasticsearchElasticsearchRabbitMQRabbitMQ
Malt
Romain Pierre

// what I do

Services

Symfony Development

Custom application development with Symfony 7, API Platform, and modern PHP 8 best practices.

Technical Leadership

Team mentoring, code reviews, architecture decisions, and Symfony technical training.

API & Integration

RESTful API design, microservices, Elasticsearch, RabbitMQ, and third-party integrations.

DevOps & Cloud

Docker, CI/CD pipelines, AWS/GCP infrastructure, Terraform, and performance optimization with Blackfire.

// my philosophy

Values

Keep it simple

The fewer exotic choices, the easier the onboarding for the next developer. I favor balanced architecture between state-of-the-art code and deliverability.

Most companies I've worked with chose a balanced model between state-of-the-art code and deliverability. I've experimented with DDD — notably at M6/Bedrock — but a model close to MVC remains more often the norm. Clear naming and project structure matter more than exotic patterns.

Endless curiosity

From hardware to UX, I thrive on exploring every layer of a project. If I can't do it at work, I'll have a side-project for it.

I rate myself 1/10 on specialization — I flourish by touching everything. My side-projects span from full-stack apps (Symfony + React Native) to infrastructure (AWS with Terraform). There was even a time when I went from hardware to UX on the same project.

AI-augmented development

I use AI tools daily for planning, implementation, and code review — while staying vigilant on the decisions that matter: architecture, security, and coherence.

With Claude, I no longer code directly — I take back the wheel when things go off track or to ensure code coherence. I use AI for studying ideas (planning phase), understanding concepts, then I make the architecture decisions. I've caught AI-generated injection vulnerabilities (SQL, XSS) especially in Clickhouse and Elasticsearch queries.

Quality & knowledge sharing

Thorough documentation, clear naming, well-structured projects. I document edge cases in code and maintain comprehensive project guides.

Since using Claude, I document edge cases even more in the code — AI tends to undo solutions found previously. My philosophy: keep things simple, minimize exotic choices, use clear naming. I rely on .md files, Notion, Makefiles, and README to ensure smooth onboarding for any new developer.

// tech stack

Skills

Coding

PHP 8PHP 8Symfony 7Symfony 7TwigSCSSSCSSBootstrapBootstrapWebPackWebPackReact

CI/CD

GitLab CICircleCIJenkinsSymfony InsightBlackfirePHPUnitBehat

AI

ChatGPTChatGPTClaude CodeClaude CodeOllamaOllama

Database

MySQLMySQLPostgreSQLPostgreSQLRedisRedisClickhouseClickhouseDoctrineDoctrineElasticsearchElasticsearchRabbitMQRabbitMQDynamoDB

System

DockerDockerAWSAWSGoogle CloudGoogle CloudCloudflareCloudflareTerraformTerraformAnsibleAnsibleNginxNginxUbuntuUbuntu

// career path

Experience

Oct 2022 - Present

Engineering Manager

Viously — Lille (Full Remote)

Symfony API Platform and legacy development: implementation of an ACL system, big data and business API analytics.

Oct 2018 - Oct 2022

Lead Developer Symfony

Norsys — Lyon (Partial Remote)

Symfony development for client projects (Spread Research, Opteven, Picwic, Cetih, M6 6play Salto, HomeServe), architecture, team support, Symfony technical training.

Oct 2016 - Oct 2018

Symfony Developer

SensioLabs — Clichy (Full Remote)

Symfony development for client projects (Sodexo, Meyclub, Arianespace, En Marche...), backend API development.

Feb 2016 - Oct 2016

Symfony Developer

Aprodix — Grenoble

Migration of the company's desktop ERP software to a mobile-responsive web version. Full project management: technical choices, specification writing, initial code implementations.

Sep 2011 - Jan 2016

Data Operations Technician

UPMC — Paris

Management of a fleet of 200 workstations and 2,500 users. Server administration (Debian), application development, hardware and software maintenance.

Feb 2011 - Sep 2011

Symfony Developer

IUFM — Paris

Development of Symfony web applications, notably a student enrollment tool.

Nov 2009 - Dec 2010

Web Developer PHP

Simple IT (Site Du Zero) — Paris

Development of the company's main website (now OpenClassrooms), developer onboarding, system administration.

// background

Education

2011

Symfony2 Training

SensioLabs, Paris

Training course initiated by SensioLabs to introduce Symfony2.

2008 - 2009

BTS IG Developer

IMC Vedior, Paris

Business computing, developer specialization. Application and database modeling, systems architecture.

2006 - 2008

Bac Pro MRIM

LEP, Combs-la-Ville

Microcomputing and networks. Network theory, routing, server administration (Debian and Windows).

2004 - 2006

BEP Electronics

LEP, Combs-la-Ville

Fundamentals of analog electronics, microcontroller programming, logic gates.

// let's work together

Get in touch

Looking for a senior Symfony developer for your next project? I'm available for freelance missions, consulting, and technical training. Based in Madrid or Paris, working fully remote.

Location

Madrid / Paris

Send me an email