Humans of Helix: Steve Voznyuk

Meet Steve Voznyuk

Manager, Software Engineering

Steve Voznyuk was always interested in technology. As a young boy, he spent his time playing video games and tinkering with all sorts of mechanical objects — cars, sink faucets, anything. Through these activities, Steve discovered a passion for problem solving and went on to fulfil that passion with an engineering career.

Now an engineering manager of Helix’s API and card processing service, Steve joined the team because he wanted to work on something that actually mattered to the world. His previous roles at various companies lacked the impact he was seeking, but with a personal passion for personal finance, he felt right at home at Helix. The majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, and Steve’s thrilled that he gets to create products that help people budget, save, invest, and get out of debt. This passion came from his parents — immigrants from Ukraine and arriving to America with eight bags to their name twenty years ago, they were able to build a comfortable life for themselves using careful money practices.

The most engaging challenge that Steve encounters in his job is scale. For instance, in February of 2022, Helix’s debit card transaction volume had grown 10x over the previous three months. Scale like this creates its own challenges, not because anything was wrong or built incorrectly, but because you’ve optimized your software to perform well at lower levels of activity. Replacing these systems with new, faster capabilities to handle the load of multimillion-user programs — not just at their current numbers, but at projected numbers two or more years down the road — is Steve’s main focus.

How are you going to buy something from Amazon with cash? Digital payments have revolutionized the commerce space, and Steve’s grateful that he gets to play such a key role in this societal transition. Innovative products, like distributing funds into multiple banks accounts using AI, are what excite Steve, and he’s thoroughly pleased that he gets to work with companies like Credit Karma, M1, and Gusto to bring these new, desperately needed solutions to light.

As a stoic person, Steve works to keep his emotions out of decisions that require rational thought. He doesn’t allow himself to be overly connected with his solutions — he’s focused on finding the right solution — and as a result, he’s very open to the ideas of his teammates. In fact, he recently saw the show Hamilton, and discovered alignment with his own views. “What are you waiting for?” Act now. These are messages Steve finds inspiring, and while Helix has an opportunity to build something great — just like Hamilton — it isn’t going to happen by accident.

Outside of work, Steve lives with his wife and two dogs in Lincoln, Nebraska. If he could travel to Glacier National Park tomorrow, he’d do it, and the less cell service the better. He also plays guitar and is part of the worship band at his church, so that takes up a lot of his weekend time, along with trying new foods.

Unfortunately, as a Ukrainian immigrant, Steve has been hit particularly hard by the war in Europe. Republic Pilgrim is an organization that Steve’s father’s friend started, and they’re currently operating on the front lines of Mariupol to bring relief to the people of Ukraine. If you have the ability, it would be a substantial help if you could donate here. Your money will go directly toward providing humanitarian aid and evacuating people when possible.