Developer Educator | API Mentor | PHP-FIG Core CommitteeSteve McDougall
I help SaaS and product teams fix slow, unreliable APIs without rewriting everything. Fifteen years building and leading engineering teams, the last several focused on PHP, Laravel, and API systems at scale — as a technical director, a consultant, and a PHP-FIG Core Committee member.
How I work with teams
Consulting
Fixing slow, unreliable APIs without rewriting everything — API quality, architecture, and the delivery decisions that determine whether a team ships with confidence or firefights. Diagnose the real failure points, stabilise the riskiest bottleneck first, then leave behind patterns the team can own.
Fractional CTO · technical due diligence · API reviews
Education & training
Team workshops and structured programmes on Laravel, API design, and testing, plus a public archive that stays free to read. PHP-FIG Core Committee member, so the standards work feeds directly back into what gets taught.
202 articles · guides · learning series
Speaking
Conference talks and workshops on API architecture, domain partitioning, and how engineering teams actually work. Available for keynotes, sessions, and internal engineering days.
13 talks across 12 events
15+years building and leading software teams
50K+developers reached through writing and talks
30+talks and workshops delivered internationally
Current
Architected and launched a scalable Laravel SaaS platform using an API-first approach, supporting rapid user growth and seamless feature expansion. Led technical strategy, modernized infrastructure, and optimized CI/CD pipelines. As fractional CTO, guided hiring, roadmap planning, and product direction, while mentoring developers to improve code quality and team collaboration.
- Designed and delivered a Laravel 11 SaaS platform serving thousands of users
- Established API-first development practices to reduce technical debt
- Improved deployment workflows with modern CI/CD automation
- Mentored a development team, introducing code review and best practices
Laravel 11PHP 8.xAPI DesignCI/CDAWS
Contributed to PHP language standards by drafting and reviewing proposals focused on framework interoperability. Participated in open discussions and formal voting processes. Shared practical developer insights to help guide the direction of new PSR standards adopted by the PHP community.
- Drafted and reviewed PSR standards for PHP framework interoperability
- Participated in proposal discussions and formal voting on new standards
- Provided practical developer feedback to guide standardization decisions
PHPAPI StandardsOpen Source Governance
Authored monthly technical deep-dives on advanced PHP topics and architectural best practices for one of the industry's most respected publications. Simplified complex concepts for a broad developer audience using storytelling techniques and clear, practical examples. Collaborated closely with editorial teams to ensure technical accuracy and maximum reader value.
- Published 12+ monthly deep-dive articles reaching 50,000+ developers
- Covered advanced PHP 8.x features, Laravel patterns, and architectural best practices
- Maintained 95%+ reader satisfaction scores through engaging technical storytelling
PHPLaravelSoftware ArchitectureTechnical Writing
Responsible for creating the Laravel certification curriculum, designing code challenges, running bootcamps, and representing certificates.dev at industry events and conferences as a speaker.
Developer Advocate · TreblleMar 2023 – Oct 2024 Led comprehensive developer education initiatives, creating extensive technical content library that significantly increased API adoption and community engagement. Represented Treblle at major international conferences, gathering critical community feedback that directly influenced product roadmap. Built practical demo projects and sample code that dramatically simplified product onboarding and accelerated developer success.
Senior Engineering Manager · GeomiqJul 2022 – Feb 2023 Managed cross-functional engineering teams delivering high-performance Laravel applications for major manufacturing clients. Implemented comprehensive process improvements including enhanced code review workflows and automated testing, resulting in significant bug reduction. Mentored engineers through structured career development programs and technical coaching sessions.
Published comprehensive articles on Laravel internals, package development, and architectural best practices for the Laravel community's primary news source. Produced educational content specifically targeting intermediate-to-advanced Laravel developers, focusing on real-world application and performance optimization. Actively highlighted innovative open-source projects and community contributions to foster ecosystem growth.
Lead Software Engineer · MumsnetApr 2022 – Jul 2022 Led backend engineering for one of the UK's highest-traffic community platforms, architecting Laravel solutions for millions of users. Designed and maintained critical APIs that improved system reliability and dramatically reduced response times. Collaborated closely with product and design teams to ship engagement-driving features while mentoring junior engineers and establishing improved development workflows.
Oversaw talented engineering team building Laravel-powered systems for the UK and Europe's largest classic car marketplace. Introduced structured agile planning processes that improved team velocity and delivery consistency. Led infrastructure initiatives ensuring exceptional uptime while fostering high-trust, high-impact team culture through regular coaching and mentorship.
Skills
Developer AdvocacyExpert
Technical Content CreationDeveloper EducationCommunity BuildingConference SpeakingTechnical WritingDeveloper RelationsProduct EvangelismWorkshop FacilitationDocumentation StrategyOpen Source AdvocacyDeveloper Experience (DX)
Backend EngineeringExpert
PHP 8.xLaravel 11GoAPI DevelopmentRESTful APIsGraphQLMicroservices ArchitectureMySQLPostgreSQLRedisOAuth 2.0JWT AuthenticationMessage QueuesEvent SourcingDatabase DesignPerformance OptimizationWebhook SystemsAPI SecurityAI-Native Development
Frontend EngineeringAdvanced
JavaScript ES6+TypeScriptVue.jsAlpine.jsAstroTailwind CSSLivewireInertia.jsServer-Side RenderingProgressive Web AppsResponsive DesignComponent ArchitectureWeb PerformanceAccessibility (a11y)
Leadership & CommunicationExpert
Engineering ManagementTeam LeadershipTechnical MentoringStrategic PlanningCross-functional CollaborationStakeholder ManagementHiring & OnboardingAgile MethodologiesCode Review CultureTechnical Decision MakingEngineering Culture
Software ArchitectureExpert
System DesignDomain-Driven Design (DDD)SOLID PrinciplesHexagonal ArchitectureEvent-Driven ArchitectureCQRS PatternAPI DesignModel Context Protocol (MCP)System ScalabilityHigh AvailabilityDistributed SystemsTechnical Debt Management
DevOps & InfrastructureAdvanced
AWS (EC2, RDS, S3, CloudFront)DockerLinux System AdministrationCI/CD PipelinesGitHub ActionsTerraformInfrastructure as CodeLoad BalancingMonitoring & Logging
Quality & TestingExpert
PHPUnitPestTest-Driven Development (TDD)Feature TestingIntegration TestingUnit TestingCode Quality ToolsStatic AnalysisPHPStanPsalmCode Coverage
Recognition
PHP Community RecognitionPHP FIG · Feb 2024Elected to PHP-FIG Core Committee, representing global PHP developer community in language standardization efforts.
Outstanding Technical Writingphp[architect] Magazine · Dec 2023Recognized for exceptional technical writing contributions and ability to make complex PHP concepts accessible to developers worldwide.
"Steve is one of the most thorough and thoughtful educators I've seen. He puts in a ton of effort and it clearly shows."
"To me, there's one word that comes to mind: 'passion'. There are only a handful of people with the same passion for programming as Steve."
"Steve brings knowledge and passion to the community, with easy to follow content that adds real value to any company that uses him."
Contact
Tell me what is breaking.
Consulting, fractional technical leadership, team training, or a conference session — email is the fastest route, and I reply to everything that is not a template.