Expert Insights: Iana Parshina on Scaling Products, Personalisation, and Leadership in Tech
In this interview, StartupReporter explores the journey of Iana Parshina, a product leader who has scaled digital products globally, leveraging personalisation, data-driven strategies, and agile methodologies to drive growth and innovation.
Iana Parshina is a product leader with a strong track record in launching and scaling digital products. She implemented personalisation for a retail mobile app with tens of millions of users, increasing key metrics.
Iana has spoken at major events (1,000+ participants per session) and mentored professionals and startups through Women in Tech (WIT). She also judges at international competitions, including the International Product Awards 2024.
Your journey spans multiple roles—product leader, mentor, speaker, and community builder. What initially drew you to product management, and how has your perspective evolved over the years?
Iana: – I always knew I wanted to be a product manager—to build products that are truly about users and create real value. Over time, my focus has shifted from simply delivering features to ensuring every product decision enhances the user experience. Personalisation and recommendation systems have been a major part of that journey, allowing me to create more meaningful interactions for millions of people.
Mentoring and speaking became a natural extension of my work. Just as I strive to improve user experiences, I also want to help the product community grow by sharing lessons, solving challenges, and building impactful solutions together. That’s why I actively contribute as a speaker and judge at major platforms like Mind the Product, Women in Tech, and the International Product Awards (TopVoices), ensuring knowledge-sharing at an international level.
Looking back at your career, you’ve worked on high-impact product initiatives, doubling monthly active users to over 20 million. What’s been the most pivotal product decision you’ve made in your career?
Iana: – One of my biggest shifts was moving away from long, rigid roadmaps towards a fast, iterative approach. The world changes too quickly for multi-year strategies—what seems like a great idea today might be irrelevant in six months. Instead, we focus on rapid experimentation, constantly testing and refining to deliver real user value.
For example, we evolved our personalisation models to adapt to real-time user behaviour, ensuring each session feels relevant. This agility helped us double MAU and build a product that evolves alongside our users.
The key lesson? The best products aren’t built in isolation—they’re shaped by continuous learning, iteration, and adaptation.
You’ve worked across different markets and geographies. How has your international experience influenced your approach to building products and leading teams?
Iana: – There’s no such thing as a universal product that works for everyone. User behaviours, expectations, and digital maturity vary widely across regions—what succeeds in one market can completely fail in another. I focus on local adaptation, deep user insights, and market-specific experimentation instead of applying a one-size-fits-all approach.
Even small things—like onboarding flows or notification strategies—can have vastly different effects depending on the market. Understanding these nuances and listening to real user feedback is what defines success.
The same applies to leadership. Building teams across cultures requires flexibility, empathy, and adapting to different work dynamics. The best products—and teams—succeed when they truly fit the people they serve.
Can you share an example of a time when user feedback significantly influenced a product direction or feature you were working on?
Iana: – User feedback is one of the strongest drivers of product evolution. We integrate it directly into our AI models to refine recommendations—for example, if a user repeatedly mentions that certain products are too expensive, our system prioritises more cost-effective alternatives.
Beyond personalisation, direct user requests shape our features. While offer expiration dates were always visible, users said they needed clearer reminders for last-day promotions. We introduced stronger visual cues and a smart notification system that only reminds users who showed interest—ensuring they don’t miss out without overwhelming them with notifications. This led to higher engagement and a better user experience.
What do you think are the most common mistakes companies make when scaling a product, and how can they avoid them?
Iana: – One big mistake is assuming that what worked at a smaller scale will work the same way as you grow. User behaviour, infrastructure demands, and operational complexity all evolve, so companies need to continuously reassess architecture, segmentation, and engagement strategies.
Another common pitfall is scaling inefficiencies instead of optimising them. If a process is slow or expensive, expanding it will only amplify those weaknesses. Automating early and streamlining operations is key.
Finally, many companies focus too much on acquisition and not enough on retention. Retaining and increasing user lifetime value is what drives long-term success. That’s why I regularly revisit the Customer Journey Map (CJM) and product blueprint to ensure we’re creating both user and business value as we scale.
Product management is often a balancing act between data-driven decisions and intuition. How do you personally approach this balance?
Iana: – Data and intuition aren’t opposites—they complement each other. Data tells us what’s happening, but it doesn’t always explain why. That’s where user research, qualitative insights, and hypothesis testing come in.
Intuition helps frame the right questions, but rather than relying on gut feeling alone, we validate hypotheses through rapid experimentation. Testing ideas quickly and cheaply allows us to learn fast, minimise risk, and refine before scaling. The best decisions come from constantly gathering feedback, questioning assumptions, and staying adaptable.
As a mentor for Women in Tech (WIT) and GetMentor, you’ve helped aspiring professionals grow. What common challenges do you see product managers facing today, and how do you guide them through these obstacles?
Iana: – A big challenge is balancing stakeholder expectations while staying user-focused. Many PMs enter the field with a passion for building great products but face pushback from stakeholders with conflicting goals. The key is strong communication—knowing not just which ideas to push forward but also how to explain why some shouldn’t be built.
Another challenge is finding new growth opportunities. PMs working on the same product for years often struggle with a narrow perspective, while newcomers fear failure, thinking unsuccessful hypotheses mean they’re not good enough. I remind them that 8 out of 10 hypotheses failing is normal—success comes from learning fast, iterating, and staying open to new ideas.
Mentorship is often a two-way street. What have you learned from the mentees you’ve worked with?
Iana: – Fresh perspectives are invaluable. When you’ve been in the field for years, it’s easy to rely on experience, but mentees often challenge assumptions and ask unexpected questions. Their curiosity reminds me to stay open-minded and adaptable.
I’ve also seen how important confidence is in product management. Many talented professionals hesitate to speak up, fearing mistakes. Helping them overcome this mindset reinforces what I believe—experimentation, even when it fails, is the fastest way to grow.
Rapid-fire questions:
- Coffee or tea? – Speciality coffee!
- Dogs or cats? – Dogs
- Summer or winter? – Summer
- Sweet or savoury? – Sweet
- Fiction or non-fiction? – Fiction
- City life or countryside? – Cities, but not megacities
- Comedy or drama? – Comedy
- What app do you use the most? – Raycast
- What’s your go-to productivity hack? – Always know why you’re doing something. If you can’t clearly define the goal and value—don’t do it.
Finally, what’s one book, podcast, or resource that has significantly influenced your thinking as a product leader?
Iana: – “Inspired” by Marty Cagan—it’s a must-read for understanding what truly makes great products. But beyond books, the real impact comes from talking to users and learning from their experiences firsthand.
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