From building global B2C fintech products to leading an international community of designers, Tatiana Andronova’s work proves that professional success and industry impact can go hand in hand
Today, as a co-founder of the Design Warmups community, she is helping emerging design talent grow by building a space for practice, collaboration, and real-world skill development.
We spoke with Tatiana about her journey, the lessons behind building a global design community, and how she’s redefining the role of designers in shaping the industry.
Tatiana, can you introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your background in design?
I’m a Product Design Lead with nearly 10 years of experience in product design. Most of my background is in fintech. Earlier in my career, back in my home country, I worked at leading fintech and e-commerce companies like Tinkoff and Yandex.
Now, I lead design for the BNPL service Tabby, which operates across the MENA region.
All of these products have one thing in common – scale. Throughout my career, I’ve led product design for financial services used by millions of people. I usually own the process end-to-end, from early concepts and research to final delivery and close collaboration with engineers.
Alongside my main work, about three years ago I launched Design Warmups – a global community for designers that serves as a free educational initiative for young and less experienced designers, connecting them with industry leaders and often leading to natural mentorship relationships.
What inspired you to launch Design Warmups, and what gap in the design industry were you aiming to address?
Over the past few years, I’ve noticed that more and more people are becoming interested in design as a profession. That makes sense – almost every aspect of our lives is being digitized.
At the same time, there’s an overwhelming amount of content and educational resources out there. Many designers consume a lot, but don’t get enough practice. There was a clear gap between the amount of information available and the opportunity to actually apply that knowledge by making decisions in real scenarios.
As the name suggests, Design Warmups is about practice – doing the work before the real work. I created it to close that gap: less passive learning, more hands-on work and discussion.
Can you tell us more about your role in building and growing the community?
I’m involved in everything – from choosing agenda and running sessions to selecting and inviting our guest experts and reviewing participants’ work. I also shape the format, content, and overall direction to make sure it stays practical and genuinely useful.
Design Warmups has grown to nearly 3,000 members – an impressive milestone for a relatively young initiative. What do you attribute this growth to?
Consistency and real value are the main reasons behind our growth. We have been running sessions consistently since launching the community around three years ago, and that regular rhythm helped build trust. People know that Design Warmups are active, reliable, and constantly evolving rather than appearing once in a while and disappearing. In most months, we run multiple sessions, which keeps momentum strong and gives members reasons to stay involved.
The second factor is real value. Every session is built around real product problems, realistic constraints, and decisions designers face in actual work. We often invite experienced designers from strong tech companies to share how they would approach the same challenge. Members also stay because they can compare different approaches, see how senior people think, and understand that in product design there is rarely only one “correct” answer.
In a landscape filled with design communities and educational platforms, what sets Design Warmups apart?
There are a few things that make us stand out. First, it’s important to understand that Design Warmups is not just about educating – it is about learning – first and foremost. There are plenty of resources and communities for designers out there, but many of them focus on delivering content rather than creating an environment that actually stimulates learning.
In contrast, Design Warmups is practice-first. No long lectures – we focus on solving tasks, discussing decisions, and learning from each other.
Second, it’s interactive. We solve challenges almost in real time, and everyone involved – whether as participants or attendees – stays engaged throughout the process. No one is just sitting on the sidelines.
Third, it’s open and real: no fake briefs, no over-polished case studies.
Third, it’s open and real: no fake briefs, no over-polished case studies, and no artificial learning environment. Many educational spaces show only polished final results, but real product work is usually messy, full of trade-offs, changing priorities, and imperfect information. We try to reflect that reality in our sessions so people learn skills they can actually use at work.
Another important difference is access. Participants can directly connect with experienced designers, ask honest questions, receive practical feedback, and hear how professionals make decisions in real teams. In many companies, especially junior environments, people may not get that level of mentorship or exposure. Design Warmups gives them a space where learning feels direct, current, and connected to the real industry.
Do you believe traditional education is enough to prepare designers for the realities of digital product work today, or is there a growing need for practice-driven communities like yours?
Not really. Traditional education gives you a foundation, but product design is ultimately about decision-making in messy, real-world conditions.
Another challenge with formal education is that curricula are often built years in advance, and by the time they’re taught, parts of that knowledge can already be outdated.
Practice-driven communities like ours are shaped by real, current needs. The tasks we create are directly inspired by the work we and our invited experts are doing every day. Many of us come from companies that shape entire industries, so we’re confident that the challenges we bring help designers build relevant skills much faster.
That’s why I believe that, alongside a strong foundation, designers who want to make a real impact on their projects need to learn from other designers – not just their immediate colleagues. Practice-driven communities offer a real opportunity to do that without getting lost in theory
Can you share examples of how participation in Design Warmups has translated into tangible outcomes for designers or real-world projects?
Participants improve portfolios, become more confident in interviews, and start thinking more like product designers rather than only UI makers. By that I mean they begin to focus not just on visuals, but on solving user and business problems, setting priorities, making trade-offs, and explaining why a decision creates value. They move from decorating screens to designing outcomes.
We also see practical career impact. Some participants use their work from sessions to strengthen portfolios, present stronger case studies, and communicate their thinking more clearly during interviews. Others become more confident inside their current companies, contribute at a higher level, or grow into stronger roles after consistent practice. In many cases, repeated exposure to real scenarios helps people progress much faster than passive learning alone.
As someone deeply involved in both practice and community-building, what challenges do you see the design profession facing in the age of AI? How is your community helping designers adapt?
AI is speeding up execution, so the value shifts to thinking – problem framing, decision-making, and taste. Many designers risk becoming too tool-dependent.
In this paradigm, the value of communities like Design Warmups becomes even more tangible. We sometimes describe it as a community for “IT creativity,” meaning we focus on developing core thinking skills and unlocking creativity – the things AI can’t replace.
Of course, one part of this is learning how to use AI as a tool, not a substitute. But what’s essential is the ability to ask the right questions, challenge assumptions, and make thoughtful decisions. That’s exactly what we practice: working through real scenarios, defending ideas, and learning how to think, not just efficiently use AI.
Looking ahead, what kind of impact do you hope Design Warmups will have on the global design ecosystem?
I’d like it to become a place where designers continuously practice and grow – not just learn once and move on.
Long term, I want to expand Design Warmups to more countries, with chapters in major cities across Europe, including London, and eventually the US. At some point, it might mean focusing less on frequency and more on the scale and impact of each event.
We already have strong traction with industry experts and have built a level of trust within the community, so scaling it further feels like a natural next step.
Ultimately, my goal is to build a community and infrastructure that helps raise the overall quality of product thinking across the industry.