When equipment roars to life in smart factories across three continents, few realize that a single architect helped build the intelligent systems powering them. Lesia Yanytska, the Chief Product Manager at Luxoft, doesn’t walk those factory floors daily, but her influence reverberates through every automated process and data-driven decision.
Lesia is the architect behind the intelligent AI copilot systems guiding production in these global manufacturing hubs. Yet, the systems themselves are only half the story. The other half is about the people shaping this transformation—and the mentorship that fuels their rise.
Professional Identity & Achievements
Lesia serves as the Chief Product Manager at Luxoft, a global software leader with a presence in 29 countries across five continents. While working in this role, she discovered bottlenecks in data access within modern factories.
“What I observed was the lack of data democratization on the factory floor despite its value in decision-making,” she explains.
This insight led her to lead the development of a groundbreaking Manufacturing Execution System (MES). The system orchestrates everything on the factory floor—from operation schedules to equipment performance and quality control.
Under Yanytska’s leadership, the MES has been deployed in diverse manufacturing sectors including electronics and automotive. “Building the MES from scratch was not just a technical challenge; it was about architecting a flexible foundation that could adapt to the unique needs of factories in different countries,” she notes.
She oversees a cross-functional team spanning five core MES products now deployed across factories in the U.S., India, Mexico, and Europe. These teams focus on product management, traceability, quality control, and equipment efficiency monitoring, including Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).
Human Impact of Innovation
The MES is more than just software; it’s a catalyst for transforming the factory floor. The system allows non-technical users to access real-time data insights via AI copilots and visual dashboards using plain language queries.
“Using the visual dashboards, non-technical workers can simply ask questions such as ‘Why did line 3 stop yesterday?’ and SQL queries are generated in seconds,” Lesia notes, explaining how the MES replaces manual reporting with real-time insights—a result that reflects the broader potential of industrial tech, as highlighted in WomenTech’s Women in Tech Statistics.
One client reported a 25% improvement in production uptime. “We leveraged Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and machine learning (ML) to pull data in real time from sensors and machines, transforming complex metrics into actionable insights,” she explains.
Lesia emphasizes the human-centered design of the system. “The design philosophy of the MES was fundamentally human-centered and about reshaping the culture of industrial AI, something I am particularly proud of.”
Championing Diversity & Mentorship
Beyond technical innovation, Lesia is passionate about mentoring young women interested in STEM and industrial tech. “What struck me was how leadership in the industrial tech field was male-dominated,” she explains. “It’s why I mentor. I want young women to see that there are fulfilling leadership paths for them in complex fields such as industrial AI.”
She mentors through programs like the Technovation Challenge and has applied to work with Nerdy Girl Success and EQUALS Her Digital Skills. She also volunteers with the FIRST Robotics Competition, helping students explore tech careers through hands-on robotics.
At Luxoft, Lesia has implemented structured pathways for early-career professionals to gain experience across product development. “Visibility is immensely important. When women see someone like them leading, it changes the narrative,” she says. Her mentorship efforts echo the mission of the WomenTech Network’s Mentoring Program to empower the next generation of women in tech.
The Factory of the Future
Looking ahead, Lesia imagines a future where smart factories evolve into human-centered environments empowered by AI. “The narrative that AI will replace human workers misses the point,” she explains. “AI should augment human capabilities, not erase them.”
Her blueprint is clear: create intelligent ecosystems that support seamless data flow, facilitate informed decision-making, and elevate human ingenuity. It’s a future that is not only efficient and innovative but also inclusive by design.
