He was the first to lend a hand and showed resilience till the end: how Dmytro Kryvenko, who fought and died in the war, is remembered at Innovecs.

September 20, 2022

Being able to take a hit, protect and support — that is precisely who Dima was. Literally, everyone with whom he worked in the company shares the same impression. At Innovecs, Dima held the position of Advanced Solution Software Architect and Team Lead in one of the most powerful projects. He created and developed it from the startup level for seven years. In addition to his great professional contribution, he loved sports and was a leader of the table tennis community at InnoClub. Dima was loved, respected, and looked up to. This is a great loss for the team, the company, and Ukraine.

Dmytro fought for Ukraine back in 2014, and during the full-scale invasion, he also could not stand aside. His contribution, his sacrifice, and his desire to protect us all are something that will remain in our memories forever, and his inspirational life will give us the strength to continue what He started. For the sake of the future that Dmytro fought for, we will live and create it.

And now, we want to share how Dmytro Kryvenko is remembered by those with whom he worked closely within the company.

Dmytro Derzhevytskyi, Advanced Software Engineer (Java):

“Dima was not only my colleague but also a comrade in arms. We fought with him in 2014-2015 in eastern Ukraine. We both were reserve officers but joined the ranks of the Armed Forces. He was senior to me in rank. He could have stayed at headquarters and drawn maps, but he decided to join our unit in the war zone. At that time, we really lacked officers who could manage combat calculations. When he arrived, I felt that there was another worthy warrior with strong leadership features. He was able to make thoughtful, correct, and quick decisions, and this is something worth learning. I aspired to be like him. Dima became my role model both on the battlefield and at work.

It was always a pleasure to have a dialogue with him. He was an incredibly well-read person, he quoted famous people. While visiting him, I saw a large shelf of books on military topics and more. He had a craving for STEM sciences and demonstrated an aptitude for them. I guess that’s why he had strong technical expertise.

We had to deal with financial calculations, rates, and algorithms in our work project. I was most impressed by how well Dima knew probability theory. I also once studied and had already forgotten it, whereas he used it at work. He always came to the rescue and was a wonderful war comrade. I felt his willingness to lend a helping hand at work and in his desire to protect the Motherland.

Back then, in 2014, I wondered why he decided to go to the battlefield because, as a staff officer, he could spend a year in the rear. Some full-time officers did so, they did not want to risk their own lives. He himself took such an initiative. He answered me, paraphrasing the words of Winston Churchill: ‘We shall choose Shame, and then have War thrown in’. If we as a people do not defend our country, then this will be our fate. By going to war, we can protect our national interests.

In 2015, we returned to normal life. I worked at the NBU as a Java developer, and Dima was the team lead at Innovecs. One day in 2016, he called me and offered to join a new project. At that time, I had no idea these were my golden years of work. Under Dima’s leadership, we went into production, and the project began to bring profit. I have thanked him for this opportunity many times, to which he liked to answer: ‘Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for lifetime’. By the way, he also liked fishing and spending time with friends, children, and colleagues at the lake outside Kyiv.

Dima was all about being venturous in addressing challenges. I remember how badly he wanted to knock down an enemy drone or plane. Of course, we did not succeed at first because this required much more military experience. At that moment, everyone was already exhausted by war and lost a little of this thrill. Dima’s arrival was a fresh breath of strength. Achieving goals was his passion. Once we received a combat readiness command, and that was one of the moments when you have to hit an aerial target. Dima was just on duty and was preparing the machine. However, it was impossible to launch the missile due to technical problems. Then he convinced his friend to do one small technical trick that made a change. This is how Dima was — to set and achieve any goal at work and in war.

Even when skiing in Bukovel, I remember him choosing steeper and faster descents. This adrenaline gave him life. That’s how I would like to remember him — as an eternally young, energetic, loyal friend and a brother in arms”.

 

Daria Nesvitailo, Senior Java Software Engineer:

“I met Dima in 2016 at an interview when our project team was still a startup and was looking for a Middle Java Software Engineer. This was my second job, and only a year passed after graduation. I wasn’t quite experienced for this position. However, Dima was a good judge of character. He saw potential in me and took the risk. At that time, there were no junior positions in the company, but they opened it for me and made an offer.

Therefore, Dima became a key figure in my career: I am who I am now thanks to him. He always knew how to choose the right words, situations, and solutions; knew how to motivate and convince. Dima was a role model for me; the one to rely on and look up to.

Because we were a startup, and there were few of us, our entire team was like a second family. We worried about the product because our work depended on it. It’s not a case where you come in and just work. We didn’t know whether we would be successful or not and whether anyone would buy us.

Recently, I was talking to my friend and said to her: ‘The person I always wanted to be — a mentor, leader, motivator, and example — has just passed away’. She replied: ‘Dasha, take a look at yourself. You are already a mentor, a team lead, and an example’. And then I kind of came to my senses: indeed, Dima managed to invest so much in me. Even after I left the project, he supported me by providing training materials, suggesting best practices, correcting the code, and keeping me on my toes.

Now I apply many things that Dima once taught me in work with my teams, mentees, and colleagues and in life. Dima was an incredible pro and an empathetic friend. He left behind many motivated, professional, and strong specialists, which is forever”.

 

Alex Lutskyi, Founder and CEO:

“I knew Dima even before the founding of Innovecs, and even then, I recognized him as a high-class professional, a decent person who is close to my own values. From the first day, we communicated more as friends, as kindred souls, and not just colleagues. He was an incredibly open, sincere, and positive person. Only kind words could be heard from Dima; he was able to turn a difficult situation into a joke, defuse a serious atmosphere, and support in a difficult moment.

Immediately after the founding of Innovecs in early 2012, we invited Dima to join the team, which at that time consisted of 5 teammates. In our cozy office in Podil, we started working with the company’s first clients, built relationships with partners together and developed the business from scratch. In the same first office, we started playing table tennis; always Dima and I stood at the same table to play a game during a break.

Also, I always invited Dima to the initial talks with clients because of his confidence, sincerity, decency, and professionalism, all of which immediately reflected our approach to the matter.

In the first years of Dima’s work at the company, a situation arose twice when the project he was leading ended and the new client had not yet confirmed the start of cooperation. But as soon as it became apparent that Dima would leave the team, two new projects appeared in which Dima joined as a leader. This is precisely what happened with the new gaming project, where Dima led the team from the first day and developed it from the ground up.

I believe we were destined to work side by side for these 10 years. I hope he was happy with his choice to grow with Innovecs and develop our team.

Dima was a person who brought the values ​​of INNOVATE, INSPIRE, and CARE to the team’s life every day. He stood at the company’s origins, and his personal traits and values ​​became a role model for many of us and imprinted these values in our DNA.

Everyone lucky enough to communicate and work with Dima learned from him, received support, help, and advice, and simply adopted a positive attitude towards work and life. Now his team has taken the initiative to invite Dima’s son, Oleksiy, to an internship at Innovecs to thank him for all the incredible energy and support he generously shared during his 10 years at the company.

They say you reap what you sow. I think this karmic circle should be closed: now it is our turn to pass on knowledge, support, and self-belief to Dima’s son. We will do everything we can to thank Dima for his feat, sacrifice in this war, and decade-long contribution to the Innovecs team”.

 

Ruslan Kostin, Software Engineer:

“I worked with Dmytro from the start of the project. I remember him as a genuine leader. So confident, with a clear vision and willingness to support and protect the team. As a leader, he took responsibility for each team member, looked for ways to resolve every situation, and brought people together. He was with us, both in grief and joy. He was very easy to communicate with and very sincere and open, both as a friend and manager at the same time. Perhaps, thanks to his ability to unite and create such an atmosphere, we have had a permanent team with low turnover for years.

Our project is like a small family. Dima always found time for us, even if it was critically scarce. I will say from my own experience that I have never met such a manager. Incredibly experienced and reliable. He was always frank and told the truth, even if it hurt, but if a person could not grow further without it, he did not keep silent. His goal was to help us to rise to challenges and solve the problem. It’s hard for me to comprehend that the person with whom I have been working side by side for 6 years is gone. He solved every problematic situation at the very beginning and never escalated them. He never shared negativity, only encouraging things.

He was one of the first to lend a hand and was very good at it. This is a great loss for us. He is irreplaceable, but we will try to keep the project at the same level. We will develop what he started and do it well.

Dima always said that he went to protect us all, our Ukraine, considering it his great duty. He said he would defend Ukraine to the last, and he did exactly that”.

 

Olena Ratova, Junior Delivery Manager:

“I remember how, during the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, Dima gathered us at a morning meeting and reassured us to prevent panic. As a person with military experience, he shared advice on how to behave, how to pack an emergency suitcase, what to do, and what not to do. He taught us to be resilient in crisis situations and lived these ideals, being resilient to the end.

I knew Dima for about 2 years. It was he who invited me to the project. Seven years ago, he developed it from scratch, together with two other colleagues. Literally, in a year, the team doubled in size to 29 people. He was the heart of the project, he knew everything here.

When he went to war, it became difficult for us without him, even though our team is quite strong, friendly, and independent. Nevertheless, Dmytro possessed deep technical expertise, and his absence was palpable. Our unity as a team is largely due to him. He recruited people close in spirit.

Table tennis was his passion. He was the leader of the table tennis community in the company. Because of his love for the cause, most of our teammates also played table tennis.

When the war started, I was sure that he would be the first to go to fight. In 2014, Dima also took part in hostilities in the east. He was always strong in spirit, optimistic, and persistent. Even while performing combat missions, he kept in touch with us in the corporate chat almost every day. Sometimes he even joined our daily meetings.

Dima always encouraged and supported a fighting spirit when someone complained about fatigue.

And he was also a great mentor. Thanks to his support, there are people on the project who have grown from juniors to seniors. He was loved and listened to. He was full of optimism. You could learn from him the ability to keep your balance in a stormy moment. Always with a great sense of humor, with fiery jokes that then spread in the team like a virus. I remember how well he conducted interviews. He wondered what people’s interests were: skiing or snowboarding, and asked if they liked table tennis. He created opportunities for growth for everyone and knew how to see potential. There are people in the team who have been in the project for six years, and Dima himself had been here even longer. Loyalty is his defining feature. Loyal to the company, the project, Ukraine”.

 

Yevhen Lutskyi, Advanced DevOps:

“Dima always loved life. For all 5 years of working with him, I never remember him being sad. He was a person with positive thinking and an optimistic attitude towards life and the environment.

He created such a light and warm atmosphere at the project that everyone wanted to come and work here. Despite his great responsibility as a leader, Dima handled difficult situations with ease and understanding. I never witnessed him being anxious, and any problematic moments during the project were solved simply, with a smile. He always took a hit if the customer was nervous and always protected everyone on the project under every circumstance. This is how he will be remembered.

Even 7 years ago, when the project was just starting, he was offered to work in the USA. But he decided to stay in Ukraine and head the project at Innovecs. Here he could realize his dreams of creating a product and building a team. The project was successfully launched and we are developing. Dima liked it. We had excellent relations with the customer.

He supported us even from the battlefield. During the calls, he asked about work processes. Going to war was his conscious choice. He could have stayed, but he felt it was his duty to protect the country, all of us. We will never forget his ultimate sacrifice.”

 


Dmytro Kryvenko’s farewell ceremony was held on August 17. This is an unspeakable pain for his family and everyone in the company. We feel it together. But at the same time, we must direct these emotions of pain towards motivating us to create and restore our Ukraine in order to honor Dima’s life. We believe this is exactly what Dima would want us to do.

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