GitScrum
Try free
7 min read • Guide 127 of 877

Creating Onboarding Guides for New Team Members

Starting a new job is overwhelming. New team members face unfamiliar codebases, unknown processes, and unnamed faces. Structured onboarding guides reduce anxiety, accelerate productivity, and improve retention by giving new hires a clear path to success.

Onboarding Goals

TimelineGoalMeasure
Day 1Setup completeCan run code locally
Week 1First contributionPR merged
Month 1Regular contributorIndependent task completion
Month 3Full team memberMentoring others

Onboarding Structure

The First 90 Days

90-DAY ONBOARDING JOURNEY
═════════════════════════

WEEK 1: ORIENTATION
├── Day 1: Admin, access, setup
├── Day 2-3: Codebase walkthrough
├── Day 4-5: First contribution
└── Checkpoint: Manager 1:1

WEEK 2-4: LEARNING
├── Team processes deep-dive
├── Take on real tasks (small)
├── Shadow team members
├── Learn domain context
└── Checkpoint: Buddy feedback

MONTH 2: CONTRIBUTING
├── Independent work
├── Join on-call rotation (shadow)
├── Participate in reviews
├── Attend all team rituals
└── Checkpoint: Manager 1:1

MONTH 3: INTEGRATING
├── Lead small features
├── Mentor newer members
├── Contribute to improvements
├── Take on-call shifts
└── Checkpoint: Onboarding complete

Week 1 Guide

Day-by-Day Plan

WEEK 1 DETAILED GUIDE
═════════════════════

DAY 1: FOUNDATION
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Complete HR onboarding
□ Get laptop, credentials
□ Access granted:
  ├── Email, Slack, Calendar
  ├── GitHub, GitScrum
  ├── VPN, Cloud consoles
  └── Documentation wiki
□ Meet your buddy
□ Post intro in #team-channel
□ Set up development environment
□ Verify: Can clone and build

DAY 2: ORIENTATION
─────────────────────────────────────
□ 1:1 with manager (30 min)
  ├── Team context
  ├── Expectations
  └── Questions
□ Codebase walkthrough with buddy
  ├── Architecture overview
  ├── Key directories
  └── How things connect
□ Read team documentation
□ Continue environment setup

DAY 3: EXPLORATION
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Team standup (observe)
□ Deep-dive: One system component
□ Set up debugging environment
□ Find and fix a typo (first PR!)
□ Review: Definition of Done

DAY 4: CONTRIBUTING
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Pick first real task (labeled "good-first-issue")
□ Understand requirements
□ Start implementation
□ Ask questions early
□ Shadow a code review

DAY 5: SHIPPING
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Complete first task
□ Submit PR
□ Go through review process
□ Merge first contribution! 🎉
□ Week 1 checkpoint with buddy

Onboarding Task in GitScrum

GITSCRUM ONBOARDING TASK
════════════════════════

TASK: [ONBOARD] @new-hire Week 1

DESCRIPTION:
Welcome! This task tracks your first week.
Check off items as you complete them.
Ask @buddy if you get stuck.

CHECKLIST:

## Day 1 - Setup
- [ ] Complete HR paperwork
- [ ] Receive laptop and credentials
- [ ] Join Slack channels (#team, #engineering, #random)
- [ ] Clone repositories
- [ ] Complete local setup
- [ ] Verify build works

## Day 2 - Orientation  
- [ ] 1:1 with manager
- [ ] Codebase tour with buddy
- [ ] Read team handbook
- [ ] Meet team members

## Day 3 - Learning
- [ ] Attend standup
- [ ] Read architecture docs
- [ ] Set up IDE
- [ ] Find a simple fix

## Day 4-5 - Contributing
- [ ] Pick first task
- [ ] Submit first PR
- [ ] Complete review
- [ ] Merge! 🎉

## Week 1 Complete
- [ ] Checkpoint with buddy
- [ ] Update this doc with improvements

ASSIGNEE: @new-hire
BUDDY: @buddy
DUE: Friday of Week 1

Buddy System

Buddy Responsibilities

ONBOARDING BUDDY GUIDE
══════════════════════

YOUR ROLE:
├── Guide, not teacher
├── Answer questions
├── Connect to right people
├── Give feedback
└── Be available

BEFORE THEY START:
□ Review onboarding docs
□ Block time for Day 1
□ Prepare welcome message
□ Identify first tasks

WEEK 1:
□ Day 1: Welcome, setup help (2-3 hours)
□ Day 2: Codebase tour (1-2 hours)
□ Daily: Check-in (15 min)
□ Day 5: Week 1 checkpoint (30 min)

ONGOING:
□ Weekly 1:1 (30 min)
□ Available for questions
□ Advocate for their needs
□ Celebrate wins

HANDOFF (after Month 1):
□ Reduce formal check-ins
□ Transition to peer relationship
□ Remain available
□ Gather feedback on onboarding

Check-in Templates

CHECK-IN QUESTIONS
══════════════════

WEEK 1 CHECK-IN:
├── How are you feeling?
├── What's been confusing?
├── What do you need?
├── Any access issues?
└── Questions about anything?

MONTH 1 CHECK-IN:
├── What's going well?
├── What's challenging?
├── Getting enough context?
├── Team dynamics OK?
├── Any blockers?
└── What would help?

MONTH 3 CHECK-IN:
├── Feeling productive?
├── Understanding domain?
├── Part of the team?
├── Career goals alignment?
├── Process improvements to suggest?
└── Ready to help onboard others?

Learning Resources

Curated Learning Path

LEARNING PATH STRUCTURE
═══════════════════════

PHASE 1: FOUNDATIONS (Week 1-2)
├── Development environment
├── Git workflow
├── Code style guide
├── PR process
└── Testing basics

PHASE 2: SYSTEMS (Week 2-4)
├── Architecture overview
├── Service interactions
├── Database schema
├── API patterns
└── Frontend structure

PHASE 3: DOMAIN (Month 1-2)
├── Business context
├── User personas
├── Product roadmap
├── Competitive landscape
└── Success metrics

PHASE 4: OPERATIONS (Month 2-3)
├── Deployment process
├── Monitoring and alerts
├── Incident response
├── On-call procedures
└── Support escalation

Resource Library

ONBOARDING RESOURCES
════════════════════

DOCUMENTATION:
├── Team handbook: [link]
├── Architecture docs: [link]
├── API documentation: [link]
├── Runbook: [link]
└── Glossary: [link]

VIDEOS:
├── Product demo: [link]
├── Architecture walkthrough: [link]
├── Deploy process: [link]
└── Past incident reviews: [link]

PEOPLE TO MEET:
├── Product Manager: @pm
├── Designer: @designer
├── DevOps: @devops
├── Support Lead: @support
└── Other teams: Schedule coffee chats

EXTERNAL:
├── Industry context: [articles]
├── Technology deep-dives: [courses]
└── Best practices: [books]

Tracking Progress

Onboarding Dashboard

ONBOARDING DASHBOARD
════════════════════

CURRENT NEW HIRES:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  Name        │ Start Date │ Week │ Progress │ Buddy    │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  @alex       │ Mar 11     │  2   │ ███░░ 40%│ @sarah   │
│  @jamie      │ Mar 4      │  3   │ ████░ 60%│ @mike    │
│  @taylor     │ Feb 18     │  5   │ █████ 85%│ @lisa    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

METRICS:
├── Avg time to first PR: 3.2 days
├── Avg time to productivity: 4.1 weeks
├── Onboarding satisfaction: 4.5/5
└── 90-day retention: 95%

RECENT COMPLETIONS:
├── @taylor: Week 1 checklist ✓
├── @jamie: First solo feature ✓
└── @alex: Environment setup ✓

Best Practices

For Onboarding Guides

  1. Progressive disclosure — Don't overwhelm day 1
  2. Buddy system — Everyone needs a go-to person
  3. Early wins — Ship something in week 1
  4. Feedback loops — Check in regularly
  5. Update continuously — New hires improve docs

Anti-Patterns

ONBOARDING MISTAKES:
✗ No structured plan
✗ Sink-or-swim mentality
✗ Outdated documentation
✗ No buddy or mentor
✗ Too much too soon
✗ No check-ins
✗ Only technical, no cultural
✗ Never updating based on feedback
Back to How To Guides