15 Years of Digital Design, Leadership, and Growth with Rava Elenovich

My name is Rava. I’m a digital designer and design team lead with over 15 years of experience.

My core expertise lies in building systematic, recognisable design that not only looks great but serves real strategic goals.

As a leader, I focus on building effective processes, shaping strong team culture, and helping designers grow to their full potential.

As a designer, I strive to speak the brand’s language — using visual identity, interface structure, and attention to detail to create products where branding and user experience work as one.

As a child, I loved drawing. People would often ask me if I wanted to become an artist or fashion designer, and that sparked my curiosity about art. When I was seven, I came across a book that described design as a "profession of the future" — one that was still evolving and expanding into new areas. That line caught my imagination. Since then, I’ve never strayed from the path. I studied design, worked in different roles, and grew as both a specialist and a leader. The deeper I go, the more I see that design isn’t just about aesthetics — it’s a powerful way to think, solve problems, and shape the world around us.

Experimentation is at the core of my creative process. I intentionally introduce new methods and explore alternative paths — even in routine workflows. It helps me discover fresh, unexpected solutions and unlock new possibilities for both the product and the team.

One example was in my CRM design team. We were working on email campaigns and push notifications, and the team was burning out from repetitive tasks. Instead of holding a regular planning session, I proposed a creative workshop: we picked a simple “movie night” email, with films like Pulp Fiction, Ratatouille, Twin Peaks, Eat Pray Love — and each designer (including the team lead and myself) created a unique poster for one film.

Within an hour, we had a fully redesigned email campaign featuring five custom posters. But more importantly, the team felt re-energised and proud of their work. That one experiment reignited our momentum and reminded everyone why they loved what they do.

Most of the time, I find inspiration inside the brand I’m working with. I treat every brand as its own universe — with a unique tone, style code, and internal logic — and diving into that always excites me.

But one of the most unexpected sources of inspiration for me has been science videos about space. I love watching content about black holes, wormholes, and distant planets. It gives me a sense of scale and infinite possibility — and I bring that feeling into my work by designing entire “worlds” within a single interface.

I wish more people understood that design isn’t about “making things pretty.” It’s a decision-making process that requires a deep understanding of users, business goals, technical limitations, and context. Design is research, structure, testing, and iteration. Visuals are just the final layer. The best interfaces often look simple, precisely because they’re built on well-thought-out systems. When teams and clients recognise that, collaboration shifts from subjective taste debates to true partnership.

My approach is always rooted in the needs of the audience we’re designing for. I never pitch ideas based on personal taste — everything I suggest is backed by user research, behavioural patterns, and clear goals.

Once the client understands that I’m not defending my opinion but advocating for the end user — and I support it with data and scenarios — trust begins to grow. That trust creates room for real dialogue and allows us to build better, stronger solutions together.

One of the most challenging — and rewarding — projects I worked on was during the pandemic, while I was at GeekBrains. We wanted to support both individuals and businesses through the isolation period, but we weren’t sure what kind of format would be truly helpful.

Eventually, we came up with a project called “Bright Summer” — a platform offering themed activity bundles for spending time at home: date night, yoga day, travel from home, and more. Brands joined in and provided bonuses — free trials, delivery discounts, promotional perks.

The biggest challenge was delivering this at speed — from idea to launch — and making it scalable. We developed a flexible admin tool so managers could create new bundles on their own. It was a true cross-functional challenge — merging UX, editorial content, partnerships, and the feeling of summer — in the middle of lockdown. The result was a success and showed how design can be a bridge between people, content, and brands — even during a crisis.

As someone who heard early in my career that “design isn’t for you,” I know how damaging negative opinions can be.

My advice: Don’t let other people’s doubts stop you. Don’t be ashamed of your early work — every path starts with mistakes. What matters most is your curiosity and inner drive. If design genuinely excites you, stick with it — even if you’re not where you want to be yet. Passion and persistence will take you further than perfection ever could.

I would love to work with Charles Rennie Mackintosh. His aesthetic — the combination of geometry, organic forms, and emotional expression — is incredibly inspiring. I admire how he captured the mood through structure and form.

My style is more vibrant and expressive, but I think our contrast could create something compelling. I’m fascinated by designers who work not just with form, but with spatial feeling and emotional tone.

I’d describe my approach as emotionally rational. I start with logic — user flows, scenarios, goals — but I always try to infuse design with energy, personality, and emotion.

I want users not just to understand the interface, but to feel the brand. Behind every structured solution, there should still be life, character, and culture. My style is about striking a balance between clarity and expression.

If you look at all my projects, each one is like a small, carefully crafted universe. I truly enjoy building something unique every time, with its tone, rules, and atmosphere. That’s what turns design from a job into a form of creative authorship.