Hiring is expensive; slow onboarding wastes it. A structured two-week ramp gets new designers billable without throwing them into fire drills.
Week one: observe and document
Shadow client calls, learn the PM tool, complete a library tagging exercise. No solo client email yet.
Templates before autonomy
Finish boards, specification exports, and portal updates using studio templates with mentor review.
Week two: owned slice
Assign a contained workstream—e.g., secondary bathroom FF&E—with daily check-ins.
Culture touchpoints
Introduce them in critique, share two "how we do it here" stories, and pair with a peer buddy for informal questions.
Fast, kind onboarding signals a studio that respects craft and people's time.
