Design Docs / RFCs / ADRs
Also written as Design Doc, Design Docs, Design Document, Technical Design Document, Technical Design Doc, Engineering RFC, ADR, ADRs, Architecture Decision Record, Architecture Decision Records
Short written documents engineers circulate before building something significant: the problem, the options considered, the chosen approach and its risks. Teams review them to catch mistakes early. Architecture decision records (ADRs) are shorter notes kept afterwards, so later engineers know why a choice was made.
Think of it like
An architect's drawings shared with the builders and the neighbours before anyone pours concrete.
Junior or senior?
Shows deliberate, senior working habits.
Junior sounds like
Has read or commented on other people's design docs.
Senior sounds like
Has written ones that changed a decision, and can describe the option they argued against and why.
Ask them
“Tell me about a design doc you wrote. What options did you reject, and did the review change your plan?”
Sounds like real experience
Names the problem, the options they weighed, why they rejected the others, and something reviewers caught that changed the plan.
Probe further if
Has only filled in templates after the work was done, or can't name an option they considered and rejected.
Reading Design Docs / RFCs / ADRs on a resume
- High signal
- Design Docs / RFCs / ADRs genuinely separates candidates, so it is worth leading a screening call with it. Its presence is a reason to talk; the question above tells you whether the experience is real.
Sourcing for Design Docs / RFCs / ADRs
Every way it's written
("Design Docs" OR "RFCs" OR "ADRs" OR "Design Doc")Paste into LinkedIn Recruiter, Naukri or your ATS. Combine with a job title and location.
Wider net, with accepted substitutes
("Design Docs" OR "RFCs" OR "ADRs" OR "Design Doc" OR "Design Document" OR "Technical Design Document")Includes skills a hiring manager would usually accept instead. Use it when the exact search runs dry.