Senior Backend Services Engineer Python/FastAPI

Location: 3 days onsite Philadelphia

Vendor Submission Requirements
Please include:

• Candidate Name
• Current Status (Active / Passive / On Project)
• Current Employer
• Proposed Start Date
• Work Authorization
• Current Location
• Confirmation of hybrid onsite availability
• Rate
• Updated resume with month/year dates

Role Overview
Seeking a highly experienced Senior Python Backend Engineer to support critical engineering initiatives with aggressive delivery timelines.
This is a hands-on development role, not an architecture or oversight position. We need someone who can quickly understand an existing codebase, take ownership of complex engineering tasks, and independently build and deliver production-quality solutions with minimal ramp-up.
The ideal candidate brings deep Python/FastAPI development experience, strong database and integration skills, and practical experience using modern AI coding assistants to accelerate development.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, and support scalable backend services, middleware, and APIs
• Build production applications using Python and FastAPI
• Develop microservices and service-layer applications
• Integrate applications with relational, NoSQL, and cloud databases
• Build integrations with enterprise APIs and external systems
• Independently own development work from requirements through production
• Quickly understand and enhance existing applications and codebases
• Troubleshoot complex application, database, and integration issues
• Write clean, maintainable, production-quality code
• Leverage GitHub Copilot, Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, or similar AI coding tools
• Collaborate with engineering, product, and data teams to meet aggressive deadlines

Required Qualifications

• Extensive senior-level backend/software engineering experience
• Advanced hands-on Python development MUST HAVE
• Strong FastAPI development MUST HAVE
• Experience building middleware, REST APIs, microservices, and backend services
• Strong database experience across SQL, NoSQL, and/or cloud platforms
• Enterprise application and API integration experience
• Strong software engineering fundamentals, testing, debugging, and production support
• Ability to independently own complex engineering work with minimal supervision
• Experience working in fast-paced environments with aggressive deadlines
• Hands-on experience using AI coding assistants such as GitHub Copilot/Codex, Claude Code, or Cursor

Preferred

• Frontend development experience
• Experience working across multiple database technologies
• Experience modernizing or enhancing existing enterprise applications

Important Screening Guidance
Please do not send Python developers whose experience is primarily data engineering, scripting, or automation.
We need a true backend software engineer who has personally built production APIs, middleware, and services using Python/FastAPI.
Candidates should be able to explain:

1. Python/FastAPI: What production backend services and APIs have they personally developed?
2. Middleware: What enterprise integrations or service-layer applications have they built?
3. Databases: Which databases have they worked with, and how did their applications interact with them?
4. Independent Execution: Can they describe a complex engineering problem they owned from requirements through production?
5. AI Coding Tools: Which AI development tools do they actively use, and how have those tools improved their development workflow?

We need a senior hands-on engineer who can hit the ground running, independently solve problems, and deliver quality code without extensive technical guidance.