Yana Potashnik🇺🇸
Director of UX Research at Versant Media
About Yana Potashnik
Director of UX Research at Versant Media
I lead UX Research organizations that shape product strategy, influence executive decision-making, and drive customer-centered innovation at scale.
Over the past two decades, I’ve built and scaled research across global organizations including NBCUniversal, Amazon, Microsoft, and high-growth startups—spanning media, AI-enabled products, healthcare, and consumer technology. My work sits at the intersection of human behavior, emerging technology, and business strategy.
I specialize in:
Translating complex human insights into clear product and business decisions Partnering with product, design, and engineering leaders to define strategy, not just validate it Scaling research functions, hiring high-performing teams, and establishing operational rigor Navigating ambiguity in fast-moving environments, including AI-driven and emerging product spaces
My experience includes leading research for 0→1 innovation as well as mature, large-scale platforms serving millions of users globally. I’ve also advised organizations as a founder and consultant, bringing an external perspective to product and experience strategy.
I’m particularly interested in how AI is reshaping user behavior, decision-making, and product interaction, and how organizations can build human-centered, responsible, and effective AI-driven experiences.
Expertise
Sessions with Yana Potashnik
- Mentorship Session (30 min): General mentorship
What mentees say
“Yana is a very patient, kind and professional person, and even though my speaking skills were low, she listened patiently and answered in very simple sentences so that I could understand easily. This empathy impressed me greatly.”
“I had an outstanding session with Yana! I came with questions about how to improve my skills as a designer. Yana shared her own experience and provided both career guidance and practical resources to start with. She is open-minded, encouraging, and kind. Thank you Yana for your help!”
“Great conversation with Yana, thank you! She is very down to earth, very supportive and encouraging. And clearly has a ton of expertise and wisdom to share.”