5 Day Onboarding Plan for a New UX Design Teammate
One Week Plan
Create an Onboarding Deck to highlight how the next few weeks are going to be.
Background of UX team. History of UX team at your company.
Layout expectations for the role and how to be successful in it.
Share the vision and mission of the UX Team.
Explain the team’s design processes.
Share insights about the Product’s team workflow.
Have them interview all members of the Product Team.
Before Day 1
Create a prioritized onboarding checklist for the new designer to go through for the first two weeks.
Build a list of tasks for yourself to monitor and adjust progress of onboarding for the first two weeks.
Send a welcome email to the Product team introducing the new designer and include their email on the thread.
List of primary tools used.
Possible group chat before day one to vet any questions.
Tentative Plan for Months 2 – 6.
Day 1
Focus on only the essential, non-critical items during the first day. It’s a lot to take in as a new team member, don’t skip or rush ahead.
Office tour and tips about the office.
Introduce them to everyone.
Reinforce the key objectives and expectations of the role. Explain how and why it matters to the success of the team and company.
Share the company vision and mission.
Walk through the org chart.
Get new team members input about project dynamics.
Onboard them to primary tools that the team uses. Provide background context on how the team uses each one.
Take them to lunch on the first day.
Leave time for questions.
Day 2
The new team member is starting to get a feel for the team and company. Now is the time to onboard them to the purpose and goals of the design projects. They should learn more about the product team they’ve joined, and how their contribution will make a difference.
Start with the how’s and why’s of the products they’ll be working with.
Share the design system. Show the projects history, how it’s used, and where it’s going.
Review the design teams current quarterly roadmap and goals.
Take them out to lunch again!
Share example workflows of how the UX team works with PMs.
Walk them through how the team collects and iterates on design feedback.
Day 3, 4, 5
The rest of the first week should make the product designer feel comfortable with the work, tools, processes, and team. Only assign them tasks associated with onboarding. Leave design work to at least the second week.
Walk them through Share Point, One-Note folders, and any other collaborative software.
Show them the Design System. Walk through the guidelines and components.
Review the calendar. How to schedule meetings. Mark as free w/ no reminders, request time off, etc.
Have them schedule 1:1 intro meetings with product team members over the next two weeks.
Have them request to sit in on other cross-functional meetings during their first month.
Have them shadow you in meetings. Ask them clarifying questions as work is assigned and reviewed so they can become comfortable making design decisions and being in the design flow.
Share insights about the company’s users personas and flow charts.
Talk through the team’s communications dynamics.
Share books and readings.
End the week with a 1:1:1 to talk through questions and set expectations for week two and beyond.
Weeks 2 - 4
As the new design team member starts their second week, set the expectation that they will start some light design work. There should be three main goals for the rest of their first month: finish tool and process onboarding, build deeper relationships with the team and start designing small projects with their product team.
Continue to dig deeper in the how’s and why’s of the product team by getting them to learn by doing.
Have them produce deliverables for new projects. User-flows, empathy maps, etc. Review the calendar. How to schedule meetings. Mark as free w/ no reminders, request time off, etc.
Make sure they’re updating the team with all steps of the work to ensure they’re using the tools correctly.
Ask them about their design interests. Solicit for ideas within your design system and products.
Work with the new team member to plan out their first strategic design project.
Learn about their personal interests and hobbies.
🗓 Do you have a 30-day plan?
Here you go, this is a 30-day plan for onboarding new designers to the team, use it for yourself if you are starting a new role and you want to quickly add value to your new team.
