Interview with Sergey Goltsov, Senior Product Designer.

How did you become a product designer? What makes your journey unique?

Honestly, it all started when I was about seven. I got a Sega console for my birthday, and it just blew my mind. It wasn’t just the games — it was the whole idea that you could move through these pixel worlds and interact with them. I didn’t know the term "user interface" back then, of course, but that's exactly what caught my attention.

That moment stuck with me. While a lot of people spend years figuring out what they want to do, I kind of knew early on that my future would have something to do with computer graphics. I didn’t have a clear path, but I started learning whatever I could — messing around with graphic editors, writing little bits of HTML and CSS, building basic collages and interfaces.

I was fascinated by how design and code worked together — like, you write a few lines, and a shape appears right there in the browser. That feeling stayed with me and shaped what I wanted to do later.

Choosing a university was easy — I went for a program in Graphic Design at Smolensk State University. During my final years there, I already started working in companies focused on UI/UX, so by the time I graduated, I had real projects under my belt.

What inspires you in your work?

For me, the best part is seeing the real impact. When someone shares online that a product I worked on helped them study, connect with others, or just save time — that’s huge. It reminds me that what we create really matters.

Of course, not everything is sunshine and rainbows — sometimes you get tough feedback. But honestly, that’s just as valuable. It points you to where you can do better.

Another thing I love is that every new project throws you into a new world. You start off knowing nothing about a topic, and then, through research and questions, you create something that actually helps people. It keeps the work exciting and fresh.

At a previous major company, you improved key metrics by 5–20%. Could you tell us specifically about these metrics and solutions?

Sure! I worked on a language-learning app, mainly on the "Books" and "Lessons" parts. One big focus was improving how people learned vocabulary while reading.

Originally, users could tap words, translate them, and save them, but very few actually used the feature. So I dug into the user flow and suggested some UX tweaks — made the save option more obvious, simplified the interaction, and added clear feedback when a word was saved.

After the update, saves jumped up by around 7–10%, depending on the user type. Even more exciting, we saw big increases in people actually starting vocabulary study sessions — up 29% among returning users, which was a huge win.

We also redesigned the "Books" navigation. A lot of users were struggling to find books they’d started reading. I pushed for a "My Books" section that was always visible. After A/B testing, about 40% of users started using it right away.

On top of that, we revamped lesson screens. That boosted exam starts by 4%, lesson completions by nearly 5%, and improved how many people stuck around to do more lessons after the first few.

Every change went through A/B testing — we made sure the numbers were real, not just lucky guesses.

What responsibilities do you handle at inDrive as a Senior Product Designer? Any unique areas of responsibility?

At inDrive, I work on the Intercity team — we make it easier for people to find travel companions for longer journeys.

My role is pretty broad, and that's something I love — it means every day feels different. I design new features, improve what’s already there, and always keep user research and data in mind when making decisions.

I’m also involved in developing and growing our design system, making sure everything looks and feels consistent across the app.

A big part of my day is spent working closely with product managers and analysts — it’s a real team effort to create designs that are not just beautiful but smart and data-driven too.

And besides the hands-on work, I mentor younger designers, offering feedback, sharing tips, and helping them grow in their careers.

How do you support other designers in your team? Any examples of mentoring?

I think supporting the team is a huge part of being a senior. I regularly join design reviews where I try to not just say “this looks off,” but explain why and how fixing something could make the user experience better.

I also share cool articles, examples from other products, and tips about working with data.

Outside of work, I mentor junior designers — helping them figure out career moves, polish portfolios, or get ready for interviews. A bunch of them are now working at top IT companies, which is super rewarding.

And I’m also part of the jury for awards like WDA 2025 and Orpertron — reviewing a ton of design work and celebrating great ideas.

You have several Figma plugins with thousands of users. How did you start creating them? What inspired you?

It started pretty simply — I was tired of doing the same repetitive tasks over and over while designing. So I thought, why not build small tools to automate them?

Plus, I was active in Figma forums and noticed a lot of designers complaining about the same things. Stuff like, "Why doesn’t Figma have this by default?" or "There has to be a faster way to do this."

That’s when I realized — if these things annoyed me and so many others, they were problems worth solving.

Is there a company you'd like to work with in the future?

I’m really into companies that make a big difference in daily life — whether it’s getting a ride, buying groceries, or learning something new. Things that feel invisible but make life smoother.

I’d love to work with teams that value accessibility and inclusivity, creating products that work for everyone, everywhere.

Design cultures at companies like Airbnb, Apple, Tesla, and Microsoft are super inspiring to me — they nail that balance between innovation and user needs.

I’m also excited about the future of tech — especially wearables and AI. I think we’re about to move beyond smartphones, and I’d love to help design whatever comes next.

Can you define your professional mission?

For me, design is about solving real problems for real people. It’s not just making things pretty — it’s about making life easier, faster, and sometimes even a little more joyful.

That’s what keeps me motivated.

Which project are you most proud of?

One that stands out was building a knowledge base for the construction industry.

Before, workers were spending way too much time digging through complicated documents. It slowed everything down.

We built a platform where information was easy to find and easy to use. I designed the UI from scratch, thinking carefully about accessibility — especially because a lot of users were older and needed high-contrast visuals.

The project ended up winning a few awards, but more importantly, it actually helped teams save time and avoid mistakes. That felt amazing.