Ivan A Tolmachev

Finstar
2024-Present
Global design strategy and execution for fintech products across multiple business units.
Xenon Partners
2021-2024
Support for portfolio companies, evolving dev-tools products into valuable assets.
Blue Origin
2019-2021
Software solutions and service design for optimal rocket manufacturing and flight systems.
Ancestry
2018-2019
Strategically targeting a younger demographic, ensuring sustained engagement from a previously untapped market.
Onfleet
2015-2018
Cutting costs and generating new revenue streams in a highly competitive last-mile delivery segment.
Rackspace
2012 - 2015
Product integration into parent's ecosystem, driving cross-team alignment and company-wide competencies.
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Leading UX and Marketing at Finstar Financial Group while pursuing a PhD in Neuroscience and HCI, exploring how the body shapes perception.
Recruiters, get my CV here
Bold ideas need evidence and adaptability
Scrappiness beats perfection in the face of constraints
User empathy drives product excellence
Leadership is about elevating others, not just yourself
Cultural rituals can build emotional safety
Success sometimes means supporting a short-term goal you don’t believe in
Leadership requires the humility to reflect and self-correct
Visual fidelity can be strategic
Never delegate empathy
Standards must be upheld, even when they’re inconvenient
Questioning power dynamics leads to healthier teams
Teaching people to challenge you builds stronger outcomes
Sometimes, a patch is the right solution
Leadership demands ethical action beyond the job
Field research is irreplaceable
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