Introduction
Differentiating your online business has become necessary in this modern, competitive digital landscape. Entrepreneurs should focus on building incredible web experiences for visitors. The backbone of any powerful web application is its choice of programming language and the development team. Among several coding languages that drive the web, PHP is gaining immense popularity, with 18.58% of developers using it for successful app creation.
PHP is known for its robust built-in features, flexibility, simplicity, and extensive community support. Considering these characteristics, many entrepreneurs think of investing in PHP-powered apps, for which they hire PHP developers. This article presents the role, essential technical skills, and ways for evaluating these skills of PHP developers. From core PHP knowledge to modern frameworks, security practices, and more, we’ll explore the necessary competencies distinguishing seasoned developers from amateurs.
What’s the Role of a PHP Developer?
PHP developers are responsible for accomplishing front- and back-end development tasks. Their key responsibilities comprise writing and maintaining code, including developing server-side logic and enhancing existing codebases. Besides, you can hire PHP developers to design and manage databases and optimize database queries to improve performance.
PHP specialists also collaborate with front-end developers to incorporate various user-facing elements in server-side logic. They perform various tests and resolve technical glitches across different browsers and platforms. When it comes to the site’s security, coders implement best practices to safeguard applications from potential cyber-attacks and other vulnerabilities.
Basically, the best PHP programmers play an integral role in constructing, updating, and enhancing web apps while maintaining security, efficiency, and scalability.
Essential Technical Skills for PHP Web Development
Core PHP Knowledge
Core PHP knowledge involves an in-depth understanding of the fundamental elements and functionalities of the PHP language. Developers should know PHP’s basic syntax and language constructs. Besides, knowledge of creating data structures and string manipulation and proficiency in object-oriented programming principles is necessary.
Always hire a dedicated PHP programmer who can read from and write to files and handle file uploads. Also, skills in managing directories, sessions, and cookies are beneficial for efficient app performance. They should learn advanced topics such as regular expressions, date and time functions, and networking concepts.
Familiarity with PHP Frameworks
PHP frameworks can boost the productivity, maintainability, and scalability of web apps. Therefore, knowledge of PHP’s powerful framework is vital to avail of numerous advantages. Developers should know basic framework fundamentals such as MVC architecture, which organizes the code by separating the application logic, data, and user interface. Also, familiarity with URL routing and templating engines is necessary.
Professionals should learn widespread PHP frameworks, including CodeIgniter, Zend, Symfony, CakePHP, and more. With a good knowledge of framework-specific tools, libraries, and features, they can streamline the development processes, write cleaner and more maintainable code and reduce repetitive coding tasks.
Front-End Development Skills
While a PHP developer’s foremost task is server-side development, they should also have basic front-end development skills. These include understanding the fundamental structure of HTML, styling HTML elements using CSS, and knowing JavaScript basics. They should also learn asynchronous operations using Promises, async/await, and AJAX to communicate clearly with server-side scripts.
In addition, their proficiency in front-end frameworks and libraries, such as Vue.js, jQuery, and Angular, can be helpful. Holding these skills enables PHP developers to collaborate more effectively with the development and design team, facilitating full-stack development and creating more interactive and engaging user experiences.
Knowledge of Database Management Skills
Solid database management skills help PHP developers store and organize data. Hire PHP developers who know basic database concepts, such as relational databases, NoSQL, and ACID properties. Understanding SQL, including CRUD operations, indexing, and advanced queries, is important. They should be able to design database schemas to reflect the application’s data requirements and relationships between entities.
Furthermore, PHP developers should be competent in managing database connectivity, data security, and integrity. Ensure they know how to implement prepared statements to prevent SQL injection attacks. Also, a good grasp of database query optimization, caching, load balancing, backup, and recovery is required to ensure flawless app performance.
Web Services and APIs Acquaintance
Web Services and APIs help apps communicate and share data. These skills enable PHP developers to integrate external services and create scalable infrastructure. They should know different APIs like GraphQL, RESTful, and WebSockets. Also, understanding API authentication methods and security practices is essential to protect API endpoints from unauthorized entry.
Utilizing this knowledge, the best PHP programmer can integrate several add-on services within an application, such as social media platforms, payment gateways, cloud services, Google Maps and more. Proficiency in web services and APIs demonstrates the developer’s ability to build integrated and robust applications.
Command on Git and Version Control Systems
Familiarity with version control systems, especially Git, helps PHP developers manage code and collaborate with teams. VCS enables coders to track and manage changes to codes and maintain a reliable project history. PHP specialists should understand various types of VCS (centralized and distributed VCS) and basic Git commands and operations.
In addition, they should have a good hold on advanced Git features, such as Stashing, Rebasing, Cherry-Picking and more. When you hire a dedicated PHP programmer, they know how to use popular repository hosting services and set up access controls and permissions for secure collaboration. They should also be familiar with integrating Git with CI/CD pipelines to automate testing and deployment processes.
Testing and Quality Assurance Skills
Testing and QA ensure that the code is reliable and bug-free. These skills enable PHP developers to maintain high code quality and deliver faultless applications. They should know how to write and run various tests, such as integration, functional, end-to-end and more.
They should be acquainted with diverse testing frameworks and tools. These include PHPUnit, Codeception, Mockery, and so on. Plus, proficiency in writing scripts to automate test execution can be beneficial. It significantly reduces manual effort and increases test coverage to catch potential issues early.
Security Best Practices
Executing the best security practices protects web applications from several cyber threats and vulnerabilities. Hire PHP developers who know fundamental security principles to ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements. They should know powerful security practices like SQL Injection Prevention and Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) Prevention.
Additionally, they should know how to execute authentication and authorization systems to add an extra security layer. Developers should also learn secure session handling, data encryption, file upload security, and error handling and logging. These security practices safeguard confidential data from unauthorized access and breaches.
Ways to Scrutinize These Technical Skills in Candidates
Evaluate a PHP Developer’s Portfolio
Review the candidate’s portfolio and examine the complexity of the projects they have handled. Inspect the code quality and pay attention to readability and adherence to coding standards. Check out what practices related to version control usage, unit tests, and security have been included in the project. This will give you a clear idea about the prospect’s capabilities and help you hire PHP developers who match your needs.
Conduct a Technical Interview
Organize a technical interview session and ask questions related to PHP fundamentals, framework knowledge, security best practices, and more. Besides, ask about their experiences with API integration and code review skills. Carefully observe their working and problem-solving approach.
Coding Simulators
Provide coding tests that simulate real-world scenarios using interactive coding platforms like HackerRank, CodeSignal, and Codility. Then, analyze how speedily and accurately the candidate solves problems. Look for a balance between speed and code quality.
Conclusion
Not all PHP coders are the right fit for your project! Therefore, outline your desired essential skills and experience and search for the best PHP developer. This guide presents critical technical skills that seasoned PHP developers must possess. Check it out now and hire PHP developers who can swiftly attain your business objectives.
