Interview with Julia Kuprina, Product Manager at OnSkin
This is the opening interview for a new column where we’ll be talking to our talented colleagues who stand behind the success of our apps and asking them to share their experiences, insights, and professional secrets.
I’m your host, Peter Lagutin, Head of the Talent Management Department, and our guest today is Julia Kuprina, Product Manager at OnSkin. Julia has been with our company for more than a year, and she has eight years of extensive experience with health and fitness projects within the IT sector. Over the past two years she has specialized in launching new products from scratch.
Peter: Julia, you joined our company to bring a new product to life — the OnSkin app that was launched a year ago. Could you please tell us about the app’s functionality and the results achieved so far?
Julia: OnSkin is a cosmetic scanner that allows you to assess the safety of your cosmetic products by scanning their barcode or taking their photo. The app helps you decipher the product’s ingredients and see whether they’re harmful or beneficial to your skin. This explains the app’s name — OnSkin — since it tells you exactly what you’re using on your skin. As for the results, we’ve seen a 7-fold increase in downloads in the four months since the app was launched. Moreover, we’ve mostly received positive reviews from the very first day, and today the app holds a rating of 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store.
Peter: So, are you saying that even in the modern world, there still exist cosmetic products that are harmful to the skin?
Julia: Despite the advancing technologies, cosmetics still may contain unsafe ingredients. The biggest danger comes from the gradual accumulation of these substances in the body. Often, people are unable to link the cosmetics they use to the negative health effects they face. Therefore, the mission of OnSkin is to make users aware of the connection between their health and the products they apply to their skin. We also aim to caution users against using cosmetics that could potentially harm them. We do not partner with any cosmetic brands or companies, nor do we sell cosmetics, because it’s important for us to stay independent and unbiased.
Peter: As we can see, your product serves a vital and valuable mission. Could you please provide us with more detail about how your app is organized? As far as I know, it’s based on an extensive database of products and ingredients.
Julia: Essentially, our database-filling work consists of two major components. One of them is the safety rating for the ingredients listed on the product label. Backed by the latest medical and clinical studies, we’ve manually processed 12,000 ingredients and scored them on the basis of the following criteria: endocrine disruption risk, reproductive toxicity, carcinogenicity, allergy risk, and high concentration alerts. The app’s algorithms use these scores to evaluate each product according to our unique formula, resulting in precise product grading. Products can receive scores ranging from 0 to 100, where 100 represents the safest product and 0 indicates the least safe one.
The other component is the database of cosmetic products which currently contains more than 160,000 products and continues to grow. Our users help us with this task by taking pictures of products not yet in the database, thus giving us the idea of what needs to be added promptly.
Over the past year, we’ve done a lot of work regarding both of these components.
Peter: What plans and updates are in store for the app in the future?
Julia: We’ll soon be releasing Hair Lab — a long-awaited feature inspired by tests with ad creatives and our user acquisition team. The concept is simple: users can specify their hair type and hair-related issues, then scan or take a photo of their shampoo, and find out whether it suits them or not.
Peter: Thank you, that sounds very interesting. What about the challenges your team has faced?
Julia: Our biggest challenge was and still is populating the database, as there was no readily available database that we could purchase and integrate into the app. Our team had to start from scratch and continue to work on it. It’s quite a daunting task due to the vast number of cosmetic products out there. But we’re coping with it effectively and continuously devising new methods to speed up this process.
All team members keep a close eye on the release of new cosmetic products — even our developers are no strangers to the world of skincare. For instance, our project manager once bought an Advent calendar with new beauty products for his wife, also taking the opportunity to scan these products and update the app’s database.
This is the strength of our team — everyone is motivated, actively engaged in the processes, passionate about the app, and deeply invested in the product.
Peter: Have the project work processes changed after you joined the team?
Julia: When I became part of the OnSkin team, work on the product was already underway. We established well-defined processes for every stage of the Product Development Life Cycle. Our team approached the product systematically and thoughtfully, and right from the beginning, we succeeded in delivering a decent and fully functional initial release of the app.
Peter: Julia, what are your team management principles?
Julia: The principles I follow are based on my experience. The most crucial one is transparency. When issues, concerns, and long-term plans aren’t discussed with the team, people may build up anxiety and uncertainty about the future. That’s why I always make sure to discuss plans and ideas for new features. This fosters team engagement and encourages everyone to think about how things can be done better or faster. Ultimately, this helps unite the team and boost our productivity.
Another principle is connected with traditions and rituals. Since our team members are spread across different parts of the world, gathering in person can be challenging. Nevertheless, we uphold an unspoken rule — always provide positive feedback when you believe a colleague has done a great job. Public recognition is incredibly motivating and inspiring.
Peter: I also know that you pay special attention to the onboarding process for newcomers to the team.
Julia: Yes, indeed, keeping in mind the usual stress of starting in a new place, I’ve prepared an onboarding document for new team members. It contains all the necessary information about the product, the project, the team members who the new employee will interact with (along with some interesting facts about them), as well as a list of tasks for the next two or three weeks. This document has proven very useful in helping new team members become familiar with our processes, and it has been well-received by all newcomers.
Peter: What message would you like to convey to your team?
Julia: I’d like to express my deep gratitude for the incredible work we’re doing. We’ve achieved a lot, and this fantastic product wouldn’t exist without each and every one of you.
Every day, as I read user feedback from people who are thankful for what we do, I feel immense pride. I know that people really benefit from our work.
So, I want to take this moment to say thank you to the OnSkin team and everyone who contributes to this product.
Peter: Can you share three facts about yourself, such as your hobbies and perhaps some surprising character traits?
Julia: First and foremost, I’m passionate about shopping, and my team is well aware of this guilty pleasure of mine. I love everything about beauty, cosmetics, and clothing, which makes the OnSkin app a perfect match for me.
Secondly, I enjoy pondering and finding solutions to tricky problems, so I’m fond of crosswords, pub quizzes, and any other activities that challenge my mind.
Lastly, I’m an avid traveler and can’t imagine my life without exploring new places. I believe that traveling is the best way to relieve stress. Recently, I had the opportunity to visit Lebanon — a country of fascinating contrasts and delicious cuisine.
Peter: Another fact I learned from your team is that you’re a presentation guru. What’s your secret?
Julia: I really love giving presentations, it’s something I excel at. I can share three insights about this:
1) I always prepare presentations in advance. I structure the material, create a draft, and give myself time to think it through — removing or adding something, as well as finding some curious facts and tricks to spice it all up.
2) The second tip is to rehearse the presentation before the actual delivery. Sure, this might not be the most enjoyable part, but it helps you understand what needs to be changed — where there’s too much information, where you should reorder the slides, etc.
3) Last but not least is polishing presentation skills. It’s always a win to enhance what you’re already good at. For example, while I know I’m good at giving presentations, I strive to become even better. I’ve recently completed a course on public speaking skills, and I’m planning to take a course on creating stylish and captivating presentations next.
Peter: Great, we look forward to your presentations. Thank you very much for sharing your insights and for this wonderful interview!
Julia: Thank you for inviting me and for this interesting conversation!
