Growth rarely follows a straight line. In our company, many specialists have taken unexpected paths, exploring new roles, learning new skills, and finding opportunities in places they hadn’t imagined.

The Journey of a Designer and Beyond: A Talk with Dmitry Novik 

Among all these stories, one of the most remarkable is the journey of Dmitry Novik, who came to LeverX as the company’s first designer and over 11 years has grown into head of design while also taking on responsibilities in business development.

How do you grow from a specialist into a leader and beyond? What keeps a professional curious and motivated for more than a decade in the same company? And how can you find new challenges and navigate career transitions? Dmitry answered all these questions and more in our conversation.

How It All Started

一 Let's start from the beginning. How did you come to LeverX, and why did you choose this company?

一 Before LeverX, I worked as a freelancer for about two years. I was a designer, but I also had to handle everything else — including pre-sales, contracts, and client communication. At some point, I got tired of that disorganization. I decided I wanted to join a company that focuses on design itself, rather than being responsible for every single process.

I heard about LeverX from Vitali Usau, my university friend. He was already working here. When the position I wanted opened, he invited me to interview. Everything went well, and just two hours later, I got a call with a job offer. That was 11 years ago.

一 Do you remember your first day at work? What was the hardest part then?

一 I don’t remember the very first day, but I do remember the first years. I can’t say there were many difficulties. Probably the hardest part was the early calls with clients from California.

Another challenge was the lack of clear division of responsibilities back then. All requirements went directly to the designer, without filtering by a business analyst or project manager. It wasn’t a big problem for me since I was used to it as a freelancer. But now, with clear frameworks in place, the work is much more structured.

Growing into a Team Lead

一 Let’s talk about your career development. You went from a designer to Head of Design. At what point did you realize you wanted to lead a team, not just grow as a specialist?

一 I didn’t really have to make that decision. When I joined, the designer role itself was experimental. I was the first one. There were several projects, and I worked part-time on each of them.

Over time, the workload grew, and I couldn’t handle it alone. We decided to hire another designer (he still works here today, by the way). Step by step, as the number of projects increased, the team expanded. As the team grew, I gradually took on leadership responsibilities and eventually became the team leader.

With time, our team went through its own evolution. The structure changed, new managers appeared, and today we have more than 30 people in the design department.

一 If you look at your career more broadly, what skills helped you move forward and become a manager?

一 I had two serious transitions. First, when you stop being just a specialist and start managing people directly. And second, when you become a manager of managers, meaning your direct reports already lead their own teams. Both transitions are not simple.

For a manager, the most important thing is communication. Finding the right words when you talk to people. I’d also add empathy, emotional intelligence. You need to be able to feel how your employees are doing, and what's going on with them.

The most valuable resource for a manager is trust. That’s what really helps when you work with people. If there’s trust, you can manage. If not, then that’s it. So, building trust is very important.

And there are a couple of things you just need to accept. For example, that as a manager you will be devalued as a designer or a programmer. And that’s normal. No need to panic about it. It’s just a different kind of work, a different responsibility.

Transitioning to Business Development

一 Already being the head of a department, what pushed you to try yourself in a different area — business development?

一 It happened quite naturally, alongside the growth of the team and the company, and with it, my area of influence.

Business development is a broad term. It can mean improving internal processes, or activities outside the teams and even outside the company. I was interested in both.

As our team grew, I noticed that we were running into issues at the process or system level. These things affected the work of the teams and the company’s growth as a whole. I wanted to influence this development.

一 Which path was more difficult for you — design or business development?

一 Business development is definitely harder.

In design, the career track is more or less clear. You know how to move from junior to middle, from middle to senior, what skills you need to learn. It’s transparent.

In business development, the road is thorny. There are fewer formal rules, fewer clear steps. Even the tasks sound different. For example: “It was bad, it needs to be good.” And I need to figure out what exactly is wrong, why it’s not working, and what “good” should look like. These tasks are very high-level, not specific. And that makes them much harder.

一 Does your design experience help you here?

一 Yes, very much.

The first thing that helps is communication. A designer talks a lot with clients. The task is to explain and defend ideas, to sell solutions. That’s very good training.

Another thing is visibility. In design, work is always apparent: clients see what’s happening at every stage. That makes it important to keep everything organized, structured, and systematized. This discipline in design translates well into business development. There too, you need order, clear systems, and well-defined metrics.

Looking Into the Future

一 If you look ahead, what is the next step for you: going deeper into one area or continuing to combine both?

一 I plan to continue combining. If I switch to one activity, I’ll have to delegate some of the work. And if we talk about delegation, it would be easier to delegate design. Largely because I have a strong team, with good managers who can handle this.

In business development, delegation is harder. But I feel comfortable in both roles, so for now I’ll continue. And then we’ll see.

一 What advice would you give to employees who feel they’ve hit a ceiling?

一 I think there’s no real ceiling in the IT field. You can grow vertically and horizontally.

The important thing is to understand that development is always the responsibility of the specialist. If a person feels stuck, the first thing is to ask themselves: what are my goals, plans, why am I not moving forward, and what should I do about it? It’s about making your own plan.

And if we talk about practical help, then it’s useful to get an outside view. You can ask colleagues, turn to a mentor, talk to your manager. Sometimes another perspective helps you see where to go next.

一 And how do you know when it’s time to try yourself in a new area, even if things are going well where you are now?

一 It’s very simple. If you want to try, you should try.

The more a person explores new areas — reads about them, listens to people who work there — the more they understand if it’s interesting. And you don’t lose anything. Trying doesn’t mean giving up what you already have.

I think it’s very important to do this from time to time. People develop more fully this way. They don’t stand still, don’t get stuck. They get new experiences, new impressions. That’s very important.

一 And what quality do you consider the most important for success — in a new field and in general? Talent, persistence, or the ability to learn?

一 I think persistence and discipline. That’s what’s really in everyone’s hands.

And about talent — I recently heard an idea that I completely agree with. Talent only means that someone learns faster or slower. But overall, persistence and discipline matter most. That’s what makes things work out.

Beyond Work

一 What inspires you outside of work? Do you have any hobbies that give you energy?

一 My main “power banks” are my family and my three dogs. They recharge me and inspire me.

As for hobbies, lately I’ve been enjoying traveling by car to different picturesque places in Europe. And in everyday life, when I’m not traveling, I like simple things, for example, grilling in the yard.

一 And one last question. How do you maintain your work–life balance?

一 I wouldn’t say I’ve nailed work–life balance, but family, walking the dogs, and getting outside help me restore some balance.