Team & Onboarding Best Practices
A condensed summary of the 25 most important team and onboarding practices for Expo SDK 57 mobile teams - drawn from every page in this section.
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A condensed summary of the 25 most important team and onboarding practices for Expo SDK 57 mobile teams - drawn from every page in this section.
Machine setup before tickets: Node 20 LTS, npm ci, npx expo-doctor, and npx expo start green on day one - Onboarding Basics.
Pin SDK 57 explicitly: expo ~57.0.4, React 19.2.3, RN 0.86.0 - new hires do not bump SDK in week one - Project Setup Basics.
CONTRIBUTING.md is canonical: Clone path, env template, branch rules, and preview label documented - not scattered Slack pins.
Same scripts locally and in CI: lint, typecheck, test, start - hires learn one command surface - Mobile CI/CD Basics.
Week-one capstone is mandatory: One E2E feature - route, screen, test, merged PR - First-Week Learning Path.
Expo Router tour early: Thin app/ routes re-exporting features/ - mental model before deep refactors - Expo Router Basics.
Buddy assignment day one: Named buddy for 90-minute codebase tour and first two PRs - not "ask anyone."
Tiered codebase checklist: Tier 1 day one, Tier 2 before capstone, Tier 3–4 week two - Codebase Tour Checklist.
Trace one feature slice together: Tap → hook → API → client - whiteboard path beats reading every file.
Preview build in week one: Every hire triggers or installs an EAS preview build on hardware - EAS Build Basics.
Expo Go vs dev client documented: README states which - custom native modules require dev client, not guesswork.
EAS login and org invite day one: Humans use eas login; CI uses EXPO_TOKEN robot - never commit tokens.
.env.example committed: EXPO_PUBLIC_* only - production secrets in EAS environments.
Standard simulator names: iPhone 16 + Pixel 8 API 35 - pairing and screenshots stay comparable.
PR evidence for UI: iOS and Android screenshots or recording - sim-only review is insufficient for shipping confidence - Pairing & Mob on Mobile.
Rotate driver every 25 minutes: Mob and pair sessions - one keyboard hogging hides bus factor.
Device lab checkout sheet: Physical devices for camera, push, biometrics - logged out between uses.
Leveling matrix over tenure: Junior vs mid defined by Router, Query, EAS, tests - Junior → Mid RN Leveling.
One competency per sprint growth plan: Gap plans are focused - not unfocused "learn React Native."
Tiny merged PR by day two: Builds CI literacy before capstone scope - confidence from green checks.
Record week-one confusion as doc PRs: README path maps and tour notes improve the next hire - onboarding is a product.
Pair on app.config.ts and eas.json first time: Credentials and bundle IDs are not solo experimentation.
Defer SDK upgrades and native plugins: Week one is read-and-ship - platform changes need staff pairing.
Release pairing for first submit shadow: Observer on eas submit + rollback doc - EAS Submit.
Written week-one retro to lead: Three bullets - clearest doc, most confusing folder, proposed doc fix - closes the feedback loop.
Expect full sprint capacity by week three. Week one is learning-shaped workload - capstone, not backlog avalanche.
One primary buddy for two weeks; optional rotate for domain experts (CI, design system) in week two.
Ship one team device or reimburse short-term rental. Require preview APK/IPA install on personal phone with staging accounts from vault.
Same machine and tour checklist; scope leveling matrix to contract length. Capstone still proves merge and CI literacy.
Assigning production tickets before Metro green and codebase tour Tier 1 - produces silent struggle and revert-heavy PRs.
Stack versions: This page was written for React 19.2.3, React Native 0.86.0, and Expo SDK 57 (
expo~57.0.4).
Reviewed by Chris St. John·Last updated Jul 16, 2026