---
type: page
slug: testimonials
title: What people say
order: 8
nav: true
updated: "2026-07-11"
lang: en
summary: >
  Real testimonials from people who worked with me, with name, role and
  the type of working relationship at the time: direct reports, peers
  and partners. Public recommendations pulled from my LinkedIn, not
  anonymous quotes.
---

# What people say

I document the cases with numbers. But results also show up in how the people who worked with me describe that work, not just in a metric. Below, public recommendations from my LinkedIn (`linkedin.com/in/allankirsten`), with name, role and the type of working relationship at the time. None of them is anonymous, none of them was written by me.

## Leadership

**Will Capone**, Product Marketing @ Anchorage Digital, reported directly to me at MAR Ventures and Remessa Online:
"Allan has been a true mentor. He's the real deal - besides being an excellent manager and helping people reach their full potential, Allan is also a hands-on designer with a wide range of skills. He doesn't just talk about design or delegate tasks: he actually gets work done."

**Giovanna Medeiros**, reported directly to me:
"I worked under Allan's leadership for almost a year [...] Allan is a transparent leader, easy to approach, open to hearing ideas and positions [...] From Allan I got the clearest, most illuminating feedback a leader has ever given me."

**Gabriel Dias**, reported directly to me:
"I worked for 8 months under Allan's management [...] He's the kind of manager who welcomes the team, encourages independent thinking and gives people the freedom to grow [...] He holds people accountable transparently and helps us get the best out of ourselves."

**Fabio Oliveira**, reported directly to me:
"Allan is a very easygoing person who has the precious ability to create strong connections with people. As a design leader, Allan gives the team a lot of autonomy but guarantees the strategy through frequent feedback sessions."

## Craft and product vision

**Raphael Farinazzo**, CEO @ PM3, professor and angel investor, worked with me on the same team:
"Allan is a true designer who knows that nice layouts are just a consequence of awesome design and creative thinking. He dives into user experience and interaction in its details, on a very realistic basis. He is a team player with solutions that are both creative and within front-end's possibility."

**Fabio Witt**, Co-founder & CPO @ Vobi (YC W22), was my partner at MAR Ventures:
"Allan is one of a kind. Working with him was an amazing experience. We faced big challenges developing the companies of our group. If you need someone passionate about leading teams and making products mean something for your users, he's the right person."

**Bruno Marques**, Product Designer @ Cayena, worked with me on the same team:
"Allan is an extremely focused and competent professional. He brings great references, manages the team always seeking the best solution, and even dives into projects making them beautiful, functional and full of nice details."

Full list of recommendations, with dates and more names, public at `linkedin.com/in/allankirsten`.