Senior .ASP.NET Core / Headless CMS Architect (Next.js + Any .NET Core Headless CMS + Azure DevOps)

Project Overview We are an ISO-certified and CMMI Level 3 software development company seeking an experienced Headless CMS Architect / Development Company to build an enterprise-grade, scalable, multilingual Headless CMS platform that will serve as the foundation for multiple corporate websites. This is not a website development project. We are developing a reusable enterprise CMS platform that integrates with our in-house designed website templates. Our UI/UX team will provide the complete frontend design. The selected vendor will develop the backend CMS, APIs, frontend integration framework, deployment pipeline, documentation, and provide knowledge transfer to our engineering team. Preferred Technology Stack Frontend Next.js (Latest LTS) React TypeScript Responsive Architecture SEO Optimized Server Side Rendering (SSR) Static Site Generation (SSG) Backend ASP.NET Core 8 (Latest LTS) REST API Swagger / OpenAPI Entity Framework Core CMS We prefer Orchard Core CMS, but we are open to other enterprise-grade open-source Headless CMS solutions such as Piranha CMS or Umbraco. Please recommend the platform you believe is best suited for long-term scalability, security, and maintainability, with justification. Database SQL Server PostgreSQL DevOps Azure DevOps Git Repository CI/CD Pipelines Automated Deployment Scope of Work The selected agency/ freelancer shall design, develop, configure, deploy, document, and support a complete enterprise Headless CMS platform. The solution should include: API-first architecture Decoupled frontend and backend Dynamic page management Dynamic navigation and menu management Component-based content architecture Media management SEO management Multilingual content (English & Hindi) Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) Audit logs Version management Draft and scheduled publishing Content preview Search functionality Reusable widgets and components REST APIs for frontend integration CMS Content Workflow (Mandatory) The content workflow must be implemented within the CMS and should be fully configurable. Minimum workflow: Author → Reviewer → Department Head → Corporate Communications → Publisher → Live Website The workflow should support: Draft Review Approval Rejection with comments Multi-level approval Scheduled publishing Version control Rollback Notifications Audit trail Content history Workflow changes should be configurable without source code modifications. Security Requirements The platform should comply with enterprise security standards including: OWASP Top 10 Secure SDLC JWT Authentication API Security Role-Based Permissions Microsoft Entra ID Ready SSO Ready MFA Ready Activity Logging Secure File Upload Security Headers Performance Requirements The selected agency/ freelancer must optimize both infrastructure and application code. The solution should be capable of achieving: GTMetrix Grade A Google Lighthouse Score above 95+ Core Web Vitals compliance Optimization should include: Image optimization Lazy loading CDN integration Caching Compression Query optimization API optimization Database indexing Code splitting Server-side rendering The agency/ freelancer should also recommend the most suitable cloud infrastructure for high performance, scalability, and security. CI/CD & Deployment Configure complete Azure DevOps CI/CD pipelines including: Source Control Automated Build Unit Testing Security Scanning Build Artifacts Development Deployment QA Deployment UAT Deployment Production Deployment Rollback Strategy Monitoring The agency/ freelancer should deploy the solution in our production environment and ensure a stable production release. Documentation & Knowledge Transfer The selected agency/ freelancer must provide complete documentation, including: Solution Architecture Database Design API Documentation Deployment Guide CI/CD Guide Administrator Manual Technical Documentation Source Code Documentation User Manual Comprehensive training and knowledge transfer to our internal development team is mandatory. Our team should be fully capable of maintaining and extending the platform after the support period. Support The selected agency/ freelancer must provide 3 months of post-production support, including: Bug fixes Security updates Performance optimization Production issue resolution Technical assistance Proposal Requirements Please include the following in your proposal: Company profile or portfolio. Recommended Headless CMS platform and technical justification. At least three enterprise Headless CMS case studies. Live project URLs. Experience with ASP.NET Core, Next.js, Azure DevOps, and Headless CMS. CI/CD and DevSecOps experience. Cloud infrastructure recommendation. Estimated project timeline. Team structure. Support and warranty approach. Experience delivering websites with GTMetrix Grade A and excellent Google Lighthouse scores. Preferred Candidates We are looking for experienced agencies or senior architects with proven expertise in enterprise CMS development, API-first architecture, cloud-native deployments, and long-term product engineering. Experience delivering multilingual, high-performance, secure corporate or government websites using ASP.NET Core, Next.js, and Orchard Core (or equivalent) will be highly preferred. Thanks & Regards Commercial Team NTSPL