diff --git a/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.test.ts b/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.test.ts
index 00d9ce70..e3c949fe 100644
--- a/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.test.ts
+++ b/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.test.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import {
   assertStaffProvisioningTarget,
   planStaffProvisioning,
   staffEmailDomainAllowed,
+  staffProvisioningFailureCode,
   StaffProvisioningSchema,
   type ExistingStaffIdentityRow,
 } from "./staff-provisioning";
@@ -28,6 +29,52 @@ const staffRow = (
   ...input,
 });
 
+describe("staff provisioning diagnostics", () => {
+  it.each([
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_SCOPE_MISMATCH",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_BINDING_CONFLICT",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_EXISTING_IDENTITY_CONFLICT",
+    "STAFF_WORKOS_HTTP_401",
+    "STAFF_WORKOS_HTTP_429",
+  ])("retains the safe refusal %s", (code) => {
+    expect(staffProvisioningFailureCode(new Error(code))).toBe(code);
+  });
+
+  it("reports SQLSTATE without database detail, SQL or credentials", () => {
+    const error = Object.assign(new Error("secret database connection"), {
+      code: "42703",
+      detail: "private identity",
+      query: "secret SQL",
+    });
+    expect(staffProvisioningFailureCode(error)).toBe("STAFF_DATABASE_42703");
+  });
+
+  it.each([
+    new Error("STAFF_PROVISIONING_API_KEY_SECRET"),
+    new Error("STAFF_WORKOS_HTTP_401 secret-token"),
+    Object.assign(new Error("private provider body"), { code: "secret-value" }),
+    { message: "STAFF_PROVISIONING_SCOPE_MISMATCH", secret: "private" },
+    "secret response",
+  ])("redacts unexpected failures %#", (error) => {
+    expect(staffProvisioningFailureCode(error)).toBe(
+      "STAFF_PROVISIONING_UNEXPECTED",
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("redacts malformed provisioning values", () => {
+    const parsed = StaffProvisioningSchema.safeParse({
+      email: "private-invalid",
+    });
+    if (parsed.success) throw new Error("Expected invalid provisioning input");
+    expect(staffProvisioningFailureCode(parsed.error)).toBe(
+      "STAFF_PROVISIONING_INVALID_INPUT",
+    );
+    expect(staffProvisioningFailureCode(new SyntaxError("private JSON"))).toBe(
+      "STAFF_PROVISIONING_INVALID_JSON",
+    );
+  });
+});
+
 describe("staff provisioning input", () => {
   it("defaults new staff to the seller role and lowercases the email", () => {
     expect(person()).toMatchObject({
diff --git a/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.ts b/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.ts
index 60113ab4..2d503a0a 100644
--- a/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.ts
+++ b/packages/contracts/src/staff-provisioning.ts
@@ -60,6 +60,43 @@ export const StaffProvisioningSchema = z
   .strict();
 export type StaffProvisioning = z.infer<typeof StaffProvisioningSchema>;
 
+/** Deployment logs may expose only these fixed refusals, never provider bodies. */
+export function staffProvisioningFailureCode(error: unknown): string {
+  const known = new Set([
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_CONFIGURATION_REQUIRED",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_DOMAIN_DENIED",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_TARGET_MISMATCH",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_SCOPE_MISMATCH",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_EXISTING_IDENTITY_CONFLICT",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_ROLE_CHANGE_NOT_REQUESTED",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_BINDING_CONFLICT",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_RETRY_REQUIRED",
+    "STAFF_PROVISIONING_LAST_ADMIN",
+    "STAFF_WORKOS_CONFIGURATION_REQUIRED",
+    "STAFF_IDENTITY_AMBIGUOUS",
+    "STAFF_IDENTITY_MISMATCH",
+    "STAFF_MEMBERSHIP_AMBIGUOUS",
+    "STAFF_MEMBERSHIP_MISMATCH",
+  ]);
+  if (error instanceof z.ZodError) return "STAFF_PROVISIONING_INVALID_INPUT";
+  if (error instanceof SyntaxError) return "STAFF_PROVISIONING_INVALID_JSON";
+  if (error instanceof Error) {
+    if (known.has(error.message)) return error.message;
+    if (/^STAFF_WORKOS_HTTP_[45]\d{2}$/u.test(error.message))
+      return error.message;
+    if (error.name === "TimeoutError") return "STAFF_WORKOS_TIMEOUT";
+  }
+  // Postgres SQLSTATE identifies the failure class without SQL, detail or values.
+  if (
+    error instanceof Error &&
+    "code" in error &&
+    typeof error.code === "string" &&
+    /^[0-9A-Z]{5}$/u.test(error.code)
+  )
+    return `STAFF_DATABASE_${error.code}`;
+  return "STAFF_PROVISIONING_UNEXPECTED";
+}
+
 /** Splits a comma-separated domain list the way the deployment writes it. */
 export function staffEmailDomains(configured: string | undefined): string[] {
   return (configured ?? "")
diff --git a/scripts/provision-staff.ts b/scripts/provision-staff.ts
index d7c82649..787576fb 100644
--- a/scripts/provision-staff.ts
+++ b/scripts/provision-staff.ts
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import {
   assertStaffProvisioningTarget,
   planStaffProvisioning,
   staffEmailDomainAllowed,
+  staffProvisioningFailureCode,
   StaffProvisioningSchema,
   type ExistingStaffIdentityRow,
   type StaffProvisioningManifest,
@@ -11,6 +12,7 @@ import {
 import postgres from "postgres";
 import { provisionWorkosStaff } from "../packages/integrations/src/workos/provision-staff";
 
+let phase = "configuration";
 async function main() {
   const raw = process.env.STAFF_PROVISIONING;
   if (!raw) return;
@@ -37,6 +39,7 @@ async function main() {
     ssl: new URL(url).hostname === "127.0.0.1" ? false : "require",
   });
   try {
+    phase = "scope";
     // Fail before provider changes unless the bootstrapped staff organization
     // and authorizing operator both exist in this exact deployed database. The
     // operator holds operations:write: an operator or a commerce administrator.
@@ -44,6 +47,8 @@ async function main() {
       await client`select o.id from organizations o join memberships m on m.organization_id=o.id join commerce_users u on u.id=m.user_id where o.id=${manifest.organization.id} and o.workos_organization_id=${manifest.organization.workosOrganizationId} and u.id=${manifest.operatorUserId} and u.is_internal_staff and public.member_has_permission(u.id, 'operations:write', o.id)`;
     if (scope.length !== 1)
       throw new Error("STAFF_PROVISIONING_SCOPE_MISMATCH");
+    console.log("staff provisioning: environment and operator scope verified");
+    phase = "identity";
     const existing = await client<
       ExistingStaffIdentityRow[]
     >`select u.id,u.workos_user_id,u.is_internal_staff,m.role,m.organization_id from commerce_users u left join memberships m on m.user_id=u.id where lower(u.email)=${person.email}`;
@@ -52,11 +57,14 @@ async function main() {
       person,
       organizationId: manifest.organization.id,
     });
+    console.log("staff provisioning: identity plan", { plan: plan.kind });
+    phase = "workos";
     const binding = await provisionWorkosStaff(
       key,
       manifest.organization.workosOrganizationId,
       person,
     );
+    phase = "binding";
     if (plan.kind !== "create" && plan.workosUserId !== binding.workosUserId)
       throw new Error("STAFF_PROVISIONING_BINDING_CONFLICT");
     if (plan.kind === "verify") {
@@ -75,11 +83,13 @@ async function main() {
       await tx`insert into outbox_messages(id,event_id,topic,payload) values(${randomUUID()},${eventId},${eventType},${tx.json(after)})`;
     };
     if (plan.kind === "update_role") {
+      phase = "update_role";
       await client.begin(async (tx) => {
         await tx`select pg_advisory_xact_lock(hashtext(${person.email}))`;
         // The same lock the Team page takes, so the administrator count below
         // cannot change underneath this update.
         await tx`select id from memberships where organization_id=${manifest.organization.id} for update`;
+        phase = "role_authority";
         const [administrators] = await tx<
           { total: number }[]
         >`select count(*)::int as total from memberships m join commerce_users u on u.id=m.user_id where m.organization_id=${manifest.organization.id} and public.member_has_permission(m.user_id, 'staff:manage', m.organization_id) and u.is_internal_staff and m.user_id<>${plan.userId}`;
@@ -88,10 +98,12 @@ async function main() {
           to: person.role,
           otherAdministrators: administrators?.total ?? 0,
         });
+        phase = "role_update";
         const updated =
           await tx`update memberships set role=${person.role} where user_id=${plan.userId} and organization_id=${manifest.organization.id} and role=${plan.from} returning id`;
         if (updated.length !== 1)
           throw new Error("STAFF_PROVISIONING_RETRY_REQUIRED");
+        phase = "role_audit";
         await appendEvent(
           tx,
           "staff.role_changed",
@@ -104,6 +116,7 @@ async function main() {
       );
       return;
     }
+    phase = plan.kind;
     await client.begin(async (tx) => {
       await tx`select pg_advisory_xact_lock(hashtext(${person.email}))`;
       const after = {
@@ -139,9 +152,10 @@ async function main() {
     await client.end();
   }
 }
-main().catch(() => {
-  console.error(
-    "staff provisioning failed; no credentials or identity-provider response bodies logged",
-  );
+main().catch((error: unknown) => {
+  console.error("staff provisioning failed", {
+    phase,
+    code: staffProvisioningFailureCode(error),
+  });
   process.exitCode = 1;
 });