Senior Ruby on Rails Developer (Product-Minded) — Independent Contractor, Project-Based
About the position We’re looking for an experienced Ruby on Rails developer who enjoys taking ownership of projects and delivering real outcomes — not just checking off tickets or juggling dozens of frameworks. This is a project-based independent contractor role. You’ll work closely with decision makers, help shape solutions, and take responsibility for designing and implementing features end-to-end. We value engineers who think about the business context as much as the code — people who simplify, reduce risk, and build software that lasts. You’ll work across our stack — Rails 8, MySQL, Heroku, AWS, and limited React (as we transition toward Hotwire) — and contribute to decisions that directly impact product direction. We prefer candidates who can comfortably collaborate within CET or US time zones. Responsibilities • Design and build secure, maintainable features in Ruby on Rails • Work from problem -> design -> implementation -> delivery • Keep solutions simple, safe, and easy to evolve • Translate business needs into clear technical approaches and tradeoffs • Contribute thoughtfully to architecture discussions • Write concise technical specs when needed • Collaborate async (Slack, GitHub) while communicating clearly and proactively Requirements • Strong experience building real, production Rails applications • Someone who owns problems — not just assigned tasks • Ability to make pragmatic engineering decisions with tradeoffs in mind • Strong communication — explaining why matters as much as what • Interest in understanding the business and customer impact • Comfortable working independently, yet collaborative when decisions matter Nice-to-haves • Experience with Hotwire • Heroku or AWS familiarity • Experience simplifying or refactoring complex systems • Prior independent contractor or project-based work experience Benefits • Project-based, meaningful ownership — you see the impact of your work • 100% remote, with preference for CET / US overlap • Full-time contractor scope • A practical engineering culture: clarity, simplicity, and maintainability • Direct collaboration with decision makers, not layers of management • Realistic expectations — we care about quality, not heroics Apply tot his job