Ekaterina Avvakumova, Lead Designer
Today, Ekaterina Avvakumova, Lead Designer at Exactpro, will talk about the distributed team she manages and the specifics of a designer’s job IT.
My career with Exactpro began at the end of 2012. Back then, the company was growing at a fast pace, with new projects branching off in many directions. At the time, it was already clear that every aspect of the company’s activities was driven by complex technologies.
I remember fondly when the testers (Alyona Bulda and Marina Kudryavtseva) and programmers (Pasha Medvedev and Vova Panarin), who now all have managerial roles, were breaking down technical terms that were new to me. Of course, it was quite difficult, challenging and, sometimes, terrifying, but I am very glad to have had this experience, to learn new things and to be able to handle things that normally go beyond the scope of a designer's duties. The most important thing is to always have people who can offer advice, explain things and support you, because Exactpro is, first and foremost, about people!
Presently, I'm in charge of developing Exactro's design team which is part of the Marketing department. My team is involved in the creation of all visual content for the company – from business cards to promotional materials and stands for the industry’s major conferences – as well as the development of interior office designs and application interfaces. In our materials, we always try to illustrate the tools and approaches, the values and the philosophy that Exactpro adheres to in its work. My previous experience helps me immensely in this. We get a large number of various tasks and projects, they cover all aspects of design and require sharpening the existing skills and developing new ones. Quite often, we work closely with other divisions of the company: copywriters, event managers, the development team, the testing team, and HR.
My greatest takeaway from working at Exactpro is realising the importance of teamwork and, in general, mastering the skill of working in a large international team. Here, you have to learn to reach compromises and agreements, make decisions, and prove your points. Working in such a team, you will eventually learn to look at things from different perspectives, to use critical thinking, and always remember that we are all different, and that our power is in our variety. And, of course, I really enjoy seeing my team’s progress and celebrating their achievements.
When I have free time, I like to spend it with my family, travel, discover new places even within the city limits. I also like to hand-make toys for my daughter and draw – these are my ways of dealing with stress :)