Hello!
I'm
Ivan
Valiukh
Design Leadership
Product Strategy & Vision
UX & Systems Thinking
Design Operations & Team Scaling
Cross-Functional Alignment
About me
Design executive with over 16 years of experience leading UI/UX and Product Design across fintech, automation, travel, and e-commerce. I build and scale high-performing design organizations that deliver measurable business impact while maintaining exceptional user experience standards.
I specialize in defining design vision, aligning cross-functional stakeholders, and transforming complex product ecosystems into cohesive, scalable systems. My leadership combines strategic thinking with operational execution, establishing design frameworks, mentoring teams across time zones, and embedding user-centered thinking into product culture.
Recognized for driving clarity in complexity, I lead initiatives that improve usability, performance, and adoption at scale. At Workato, my leadership contributed to a 37% increase in user adoption by elevating product experience and aligning design strategy with business objectives.
Passionate about building design cultures rooted in ownership, continuous improvement, and long-term product excellence.
Head of Design
Senior Design Manager
Say Hello
Projects
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Workato Copilot
Workato Copilot
Web DesignWeb Design -
Workato Community Library
Workato Community Library
Web DesignWeb Design -
Workato Docs 2.0
Workato Docs 2.0
Web DesignWeb Design -
Halyk Travel
Halyk Travel
Mobile DesignMobile Design -
Bir Bank
Bir Bank
Mobile DesignMobile Design -
ABA’ Bank ATM
ABA’ Bank ATM
Web DesignWeb Design -
Job Done
Job Done
mobile design, web designmobile design, web design
Experience
Workato
Leading enterprise integration and workflow automation platform
(Series E, ~$5.7B valuation).
Design Director
Sep 2021 – Sep 2024
- Led design across the full product surface at Workato, including the core recipe builder, AI features, community library, onboarding flows, in-product walkthroughs, and recommendation systems.
- Redesigned the product documentation website and product hub, extending PLG principles beyond the core product to support self-serve discovery and user activation.
- Presented design strategy and work directly to CEO, CTO, and executive leadership, defending design decisions with data and rationale and successfully protecting vision through roadmap trade-offs.
- Ran stakeholder sessions connecting design improvements to measurable business impact, building the case for design investment across product areas.
- Designed and shipped AI-native product features, including a Copilot assistant, an intelligent knowledge tool (Sidekick/AssistIQ), and Genies, an autonomous AI agent system.
- Managed a distributed globally remote design team improving delivery predictability and raising quality standards.
- Established structured design operations: intake processes, cross-functional workflows, and clear prioritization frameworks aligned to business OKRs.
- Expanded the Workato design system by introducing new patterns and broadening component coverage.
- Co-created a design career framework with People Ops and HR; ran formal performance reviews and built individual growth plans for every designer on the team.
- Hired 6 designers in partnership with VP of Design, defining role requirements and leading candidate evaluation; managed underperformance and team restructuring through periods of growth and hiring freezes.
- Partnered with a dedicated UX Research team to commission and incorporate research findings into design decisions across product streams.
Alty
Award-winning intech product studio building banking and investment applications.
Head of Design
Oct 2019 – Sep 2021
- Inherited a design function with no processes, no design system, and no cross-functional relationships; built it into a structured 13-person team with full design operations within two years.
- Held full hiring authority, sourcing, evaluating, and making final decisions on design hires; managed underperformance and restructured team composition as the product portfolio evolved.
- Created a design leveling and career framework from scratch; promoted 4+ designers across levels and ran structured 1:1s and performance reviews.
- Co-led pre-sales meetings and client workshops alongside PMs and account managers; design quality was explicitly cited by clients as a reason for awarding projects, directly contributing to business development.
- Delivered projects for Visa, Mastercard, and McKinsey, managing client relationships and design expectations.
- Built a modular design system architected, enabling the team to onboard new projects significantly faster.
- Introduced a handoff system of state-coverage checklists and design annotations that reduced designer time spent supporting engineering queries from ~48 to ~16 hours per month.
- Established a research practice: hired a dedicated researcher, introduced tooling (Hotjar, Maze), and embedded research findings into project kickoffs across all product streams.
- Introduced design critique sessions, reviews, and work showcases, building a culture of craft and quality standards
- Created and implemented accessibility standards and practices across all product work.
- Defined the design team strategy and introduced a structured awards submission process, resulting in the RedDot Design Award 2020 for the Halyk Travel Mobile App.
S-Pro
Enterprise software studio delivering B2B and SaaS solutions.
Lead Product Designer
Feb 2019 – Oct 2019
- Led a team of 6 designers across multiple concurrent B2B and enterprise client projects, managing workload distribution and maintaining quality standards under tight delivery timelines.
- Built design team processes from scratch, introducing structured workflows for project scoping, handoff, and client feedback that improved consistency across engagements.
- Worked directly with international and US-based clients, running stakeholder workshops, requirements discovery sessions, and presenting design decisions to non-design audiences.
- Defined product design strategy and user journey frameworks for SaaS and enterprise platforms.
Astound Digital
Global digital commerce agency serving enterprise retail clients.
Lead UI Designer
Apr 2017 – Dec 2018
- Managed a team of 17 UI designers across US and European time zones, standardizing processes, establishing shared component libraries, and maintaining output consistency at scale.
- Delivered scalable design systems for major e-commerce platforms serving US and European enterprise clients, enabling faster onboarding of new brand and market requirements.
- Worked directly with international client stakeholders, facilitating cross-functional workshops and aligning design decisions with business and commerce objectives.
- Introduced shared UI component libraries and documentation practices that reduced duplication across projects and improved team-wide design velocity.
Glorium Technologies
Global digital commerce agency serving enterprise retail clients.
Senior Product Designer
Feb 2015 – Apr 2017
- Led UX and interface design for Niko Health, a US-market Healthcare CRM platform.
- Conducted user research, competitor analysis, user testing, and market analysis to inform design decisions and enhance the overall user experience.
- Collaborated directly with US-based clients and product stakeholders.
- Designed landing pages, developed branding, and created marketing materials to enhance the company’s visual identity and customer engagement.
MTE Development
Software development
company
Product Designer
May 2014 – Feb 2015
www.mtedev.com
- Designed a CRM interface for a local warehouse company, optimizing workflow and usability.
- Created wireframes and prototypes to refine the user experience and ensure seamless functionality.
Ad-Power Group
Advertisement agency
Web Designer
Mar 2013 – Apr 2014
www.ad-power.com
- Designed corporate websites and landing pages, ensuring a seamless and engaging user experience.
- Created visual designs for various marketing and promotional materials to enhance brand identity and engagement.
- Managed brand identity work across multiple client accounts simultaneously, creating logos, color systems, and typography from scratch and developing brand guidelines to support long-term consistency
- Produced print and digital branded materials across campaigns, maintaining visual consistency and managing brand standards from initial concept through to final delivery
Oil & Gas Magazine
Print and Graphic Designer
Sep 2011 – Jan 2012
- Editorial and print design for an industry publication, covering layout, typography, and visual production across regular print issues.
- Produced visual designs for marketing and promotional materials across print and digital platforms
The Centre of Ukrainian Culture and Art
Print and Graphic Designer
Mar 2007 – Apr 2011
- Graphic design for cultural programmes, events, and promotional materials, covering print collateral, posters, and visual identity work across a range of cultural initiatives.
- Responsible for full magazine production, managing layout, typography, and print-ready preparation across regular editorial issues.