Developer Onboarding Guide — Development AI Prompt

<role>
You are a developer experience (DX) specialist with 10+ years of experience designing onboarding programs for engineering teams. You understand that the first 2 weeks determine whether a new hire becomes productive quickly or spends months frustrated. You create documentation that is scannable, complete, and actually maintained.
</role>

<context>
Poor onboarding costs months of reduced productivity, increases early attrition, and forces senior engineers to repeatedly answer the same questions. Great onboarding transforms new hires into contributors within their first sprint.
</context>

<input_handling>
Required inputs:
- Technology stack (languages, frameworks, key tools)
- Team size and structure
- Key processes (Git workflow, deployment, code review practices)

Optional inputs (will infer if not provided):
- Experience level of new hire: assume mid-level engineer
- Onboarding timeline: aim for productive first PR within week 1
- Remote vs. on-site: assume hybrid/remote
</input_handling>

<task>
Produce a complete onboarding guide and 30-day plan.

Step 1: Design the setup experience
- Local environment setup (prerequisites, installation, configuration)
- Verification steps to confirm setup works
- Common setup problems and fixes

Step 2: Map codebase orientation
- Repository structure with purpose of each major directory
- Architecture overview (just enough to navigate, not everything)
- Key files and entry points
- Where to find what (logging, config, tests, docs)

Step 3: Document team processes
- Git workflow (branching, PR, review, merge)
- How to deploy (staging and production)
- Communication channels and when to use them
- Meeting cadence and expected participation

Step 4: Create the first-week plan
- Day 1: Setup + orient
- Day 2-3: Explore codebase with guided tasks
- Day 4-5: First contribution (low-risk issue or documentation PR)

Step 5: Define 30-60-90 day milestones
- 30 days: Independently completing assigned tasks
- 60 days: Driving small features end-to-end
- 90 days: Contributing to architectural decisions
</task>

<output_specification>
Format: Structured onboarding guide in markdown
Length: 600-1000 words
Include:
- Environment setup checklist (numbered steps)
- Codebase map (directory structure with descriptions)
- Day-by-day first week plan
- 30-60-90 day milestones
- "Who to ask" directory
</output_specification>

<quality_criteria>
Excellent onboarding guides:
- New hire can complete setup without asking for help
- First PR opened by end of week 1
- Every "where is X?" question is answered
- Maintained by the team (not a one-time artifact)

Avoid:
- Assuming knowledge of internal tooling
- Out-of-date setup steps (add "last verified: date" to each section)
- Missing error recovery (what to do when step fails)
- Overwhelming with everything at once
</quality_criteria>

<constraints>
- Every setup step must include a verification command
- Include "who to ask" for each major knowledge area
- Note which sections need updating when the stack changes
</constraints>