Proposify | ReggieSpace Projects

Project Overview

Proposify is a leading SaaS proposal software that helps modern sales teams create, send, and track winning documents. I was originally brought on as a Frontend Developer to modernize the user interface; however, upon auditing the architecture, I discovered a significant bottleneck: the legacy PHP backend was tightly coupled with the frontend, returning fully rendered HTML views instead of raw data (JSON).

Recognizing that this would prevent the platform from ever achieving true scalability or a modern user experience, I shifted my focus to the backend. I spearheaded a massive architectural pivot that decoupled the systems, introduced high-performance patterns, and ultimately laid the foundation for the platform’s modern React-based frontend.

My Role & Impact

My journey at Proposify was defined by transitioning from a specialized frontend role into a Senior Software Engineer, leading core architectural changes that enabled the company to scale to the next level of SaaS maturity.

Modernizing the “View-Based” Backend

I took the initiative to refactor 85% of the legacy PHP backend, moving the system away from server-side rendered views toward a Clean Architecture based on Domain-Driven Design (DDD) and SOLID principles. This transformation turned the backend into a high-performance API capable of serving multiple clients.

Introducing React (The Hackathon Pivot)

To prove that a decoupled architecture could work, I leveraged an internal Hackathon to build a Proof of Concept (POC) using React. This fast, state-managed UI communicating with the new API layer became the catalyst for the company’s decision to migrate the entire frontend to React—dramatically improving both developer experience and user performance.

Engineering a Quality Culture

When I joined, the legacy codebase had 0% unit test coverage. I established rigorous testing practices using Jest and Mocha, leading the team to write 3,000+ tests in eight months. This cultural shift virtually eliminated regressions and enabled confident, frequent deployments.

Database Optimization & Scalability

I optimized the MySQL architecture for a multi-tenant SaaS environment. By refining indexing strategies and query structures, the platform was able to handle increased load as the user base grew—directly supporting company expansion.

Technical Architecture

The transformation centered on moving from a monolithic, “spaghetti” structure to a decoupled, service-oriented architecture.

From Monolith to API-First

Legacy State: PHP controllers returning HTML views via server-side rendering
Modern State: A service layer delivering structured JSON, allowing the frontend to manage state independently

Frontend Modernization

React Migration: Transition from legacy templates to a component-based architecture using React and modern state management

Production Readiness

Multi-Tenant MySQL: Optimized for high-concurrency access across thousands of independent customer accounts
CI/CD & Testing: Automated testing integrated into the deployment pipeline, ensuring 99.9% build stability

Technical Stack

Languages

PHP (Modernization / DDD)
TypeScript / JavaScript

Frameworks & Libraries

React
Node.js
Redux

Data & Infrastructure

MySQL (Multi-tenant optimization)
Redis (Caching)
Docker