T E S T I M O N I A L S
What colleagues and clients say...
“I worked with Marina for several years at American Express. At the time I was the director of UX on the commercial side. Throughout our time working together, Marina never missed a beat. She excelled at all she did, was a strong advocate for good user centered product design and delivered with excellence. Her knowledge in the field, patience to understand the problem, and effortless ability to prove value to partners, made her an exceptional leader in this space.”
Jack Paccione
Former UX Director, Amex
“Marina is an invaluable resource to our organization. She has an outstanding ability to understand design from a user-centric perspective. She understands the subtleties of each market and responds with an appropriately unique design. She also brings a strong technical knowledge, excellent management skills and is a pleasure to work with.”
Robert Wiesenberg
President, Contegra Systems
“Marina helped take Civic Ventures’ Web efforts to a new level, launching our new flagship site, Encore.org, redesigning ExperienceCorps.org and introducing a host of innovative solutions to longstanding challenges within the organization. She did all this with exceptional energy and good humor and an ability to juggle many tasks at once. She was a joy to work with and is sorely missed.”
David Bank
Former VP, Civic Ventures
“Marina is without a question the best leader I ever had the pleasure to work with…she truly cares about the team, about the mental state of every single person…allowing other designers to have different opinions than her, which makes their voices relevant.. I also admire her way of thinking, with good research and logic always being top priorities in our projects. She inspires everyone to be the best designer they can be. Thanks to her approach, her guidance and her support I strongly believe I became a better designer than I ever was.”
Jerzy Zareba
Senior Brand Designer, 21.co
“Marina is an amazing leader, plain and simple. I had never been a part of a team that ran so smoothly and transparently before. Her technical expertise is undeniable, but I was touched the most by her human-centered approach. She knew the strengths and quirks of everyone on the team, and she was able to ground the pressures of the business with a compassionate attitude. With Marina’s guidance, everyone’s talents were maximized. She really is a star!”
Becca Cobetto
Former UX Writer, 21.co
“Marina is the kind of leader and mentor I always wished for. With her humor, dedication and open-mindedness she always makes sure everyone leaves a meeting with a smile. Marina helped me to grow as a designer and as a human. The way she juggles multiple projects is outstanding, it made a dramatic difference in the productivity level of our design team. Marina also goes out of her way to encourage different perspectives and diverse viewpoints, which deepened our connections as a team lot.”
Filip Geschwandtner
Senior Product Designer, 21.co
S U C C E S S _ S T O R I E S
What students say...
I’ve been very lucky to be able to help more than a 100 of my mentees to find their voices and professional success in UX Design, User Research, Product Design and Design Leadership roles.
“I have been so incredibly fortunate to have Marina as my mentor during UX Academy! Her wealth of knowledge and fantastic ability to effectively impart that knowledge has made my journey into UX design an amazing experience. She knows how to bolster your strengths and guide you to find your voice as a designer. I can never thank you enough, Marina!”
- Peter Nguyen, UX Academy Student, Designlab
“Marina is a fantastic mentor. She has deep industry knowledge, innovative ideas, and genuinely cares and motivates you to succeed in your goals. She has an ability to quickly identify strengths and connect them with opportunities. I’m very grateful for my sessions with Marina. Highly recommended.”
- Nicholas Minosora, Private UX student
“It was great! Marina really helped me talk through things and get a good plan of action.”
- Britteny Black, Private UX student, Mentorcruise
“My experience working with Marina was hands down the most valuable attribute of this program. She is knowledgeable, straight to the point, and very detail oriented. She helped instill confidence in my design skills and has a knack for honing in on your strengths. She kept me engaged and motivated throughout the program and was a wealth of knowledge. I felt empowered after every session, and am grateful to have been paired with her.”
- Caitlin James, UX Academy student, Designlab
“Marina was incredibly helpful, showed an expert insight and was honestly just very fun to work with.”
- Sylvie Howton, Private UX student, Mentorcruise
“Marina has been an amazing mentor. She’s always encouraging, positive, and quick to provide helpful feedback. Marina answered my questions while sharing from her own experiences too. Thank you for being a great mentor, Marina!”
- Pam Brody, Career Services, Designlab
“Marina’s energy as well as expertise are much appreciated.”
- Margaret Amein, Private UXR Student, Mentorcruise
“My experience at Designlab wouldn’t have been the same without Marina. She definitely made a difference in my UX journey: supportive, encouraging and insightful. She always pushed me to do better and to bring my knowledge to another level. Her feedback and expertise were very valuable.”
- Benedetto Di Luzio, UX Academy student, Designlab
“Marina was very knowledgeable about her field. She answered all my questions!.”
- Petra Bennett, Private UX Student, Mentorcruise
“Marina is awesome. She was able to meet with me very quickly and get the process going. I walked away with tons of food for thought after our first meeting. She created a development plan with exercises and concrete tasks, helped me identify gaps in my skills/knowledge, and has communicate extremely well with me. I am grateful I get to learn from her!”
- Bruno Nagel, Private UX student, Mentorcruise
“Working with Marina has been a great experience! She’s helped me recognize and leverage my strengths as a designer. Her candid but uplifting feedback has helped me improve the work that I’m doing.”
- Kevin Paz, Private UX student, Mentorcruise
“I would definitely recommend Marina as mentor for anyone who is getting into UX design or deciding related career path. She is very positive and encouraging which was very valuable trait and make you feel at ease and get the best of your sessions. She is also willing to share resources and advice for things that maybe holding you back in your career journey. Thanks Marina!”
- Mithun Sanghavi, Private UX student, Mentorcruise
“Marina helped provide clarity for many of the questions and unknowns that I’d been wrestling with. She did a wonderful job to make more tractable my journey and approach. I’d definitely recommend her!”
- Matthew McPhail, Private UX student, Mentorcruise
“Marina was a pleasure to mentor with! I would recommend her to anyone seeking direction or guidance from an experienced UX Professional!”
- Matt Rosenberg, Private UX student, Mentorcruise