These are some of my favorite recommendations from colleagues. A full list of recommendations can be found on my LinkedIn profile.
Ryan possesses strengths as a technology researcher and explorer of technologies in a DevSecOps space, with experience across software development, CyberSecurity, and Site Reliability Engineering capabilities. I have had the privilege of working with Ryan for 6 out of the 8 years, part of it as his direct manager and the remainder within in various functions inside our group. Ryan was willing to move to different areas when requested resulting in a blend of experiences.
One of the highlights of Ryan’s time here was his meticulous documentation of technical processes and recommendations for team to adopt. He engaged frequently with other teams and in interest channels and is not shy in expressing his opinion. One of my favorite qualities about Ryan is his cloud market awareness and continued ability to bring attention to opportunities for systems advancement. I would recommend Ryan for positions where there is a focus on innovation and autonomy.
As a Product Manager, I’ve worked with Ryan for 8 years at McGraw Hill. Both with Ryan on the same team and with him as an SRE. As both a talented software developer and a skilled Site Reliability Engineer (SRE), Ryan consistently demonstrated a deep technical expertise paired with an eye on and commitment to our end users’ experiences and reliability. Ryan has always demonstrated a willingness to share knowledge and mentor others and has forged many relationships while at McGraw Hill.
I had the pleasure of working with Ryan and managing him directly, and I can confidently say he’s one of the most talented and adaptable engineers I’ve come across. His technical skills are truly impressive. Whether it’s tackling complex challenges, designing smart solutions, or digging into the details of a project, Ryan consistently delivers top-notch results.
What really makes Ryan stand out isn’t just his technical abilities, but how easily he collaborates with others, mentors his teammates, and handles problems with a calm, practical approach. He brings a unique mix of creativity, precision, and strategic thinking that helps him approach every project with efficiency and finesse.
In every project we worked on together, Ryan showed a knack for thinking outside the box while still staying grounded in solid engineering practices. His strong work ethic, passion for innovation, and constant drive to push the envelope make him an invaluable team member.
I can’t recommend Ryan highly enough for any role that needs top-tier engineering talent and leadership. Any company would be lucky to have him!
Director of Site Reliability & Observability Engineering
I've had the absolute privilege to work/grind/solution in the trenches with Ryan at McGraw Hill. I started as a senior SRE and as soon as I met Ryan I instantly realized that he could be a solid mentor for me to learn the space (it was my first time being an SRE). Throughout our 6 or so years together Ryan did become that mentor, and he taught me a TON. I've worked on many projects with Ryan, and used many pieces of software he's written single-handedly. After all of that, I still have nothing but positive things to say about him as a person and a colleague.
Ryan's knowledge of the space coupled with a fantastic attitude and innate desire to help no matter what it is, makes Ryan a fantastic addition to any team. If you're reading this, and have a chance to hire Ryan. Do like Nike says… "Just do it". He will only add value to anything he works on/is consulted on. But more than that, he'll ensure he documents it all really well, supports anyone that needs it, and is always welcoming on any conversations or feedback about it.
Ryan's knowledge space (at least as far as i've seen) is across the spectrum. Dev, Cloud, CloudDev, DevOps, SecOps, Automation, Systems Design, Systems Arch, etc. He sees the big picture, but can drop right down into the detail with anyone. If he doesn't know it… give him a day.
I also want to comment a bit on Ryan's character, personality and soft skills. Ryan is calm, thoughtful, respectful, well spoken, intelligent, informed, and kind. He navigates through turmoil like a seasoned naval captain with nerves of steel, and Ryan's constant positive attitude is infectious and seems to boost team morale almost by osmosis. He believes that with a work, an organization can become world class and reach unheard of levels of reliability, availability, and fault tolerance. It's an inspiring notion.
Ryan is top brass in my book.
Working with Ryan was a true pleasure due to his outstanding professionalism. He consistently demonstrated high levels of integrity, ethics, and respect toward his colleagues, regardless of their experience level. His commitment to delivering high-quality work and meticulous attention to detail greatly benefited our teams.
Ryan’s well-structured codebases and thorough documentation served as invaluable resources. His exceptional problem-solving skills were crucial to our success, and he excelled at mentoring junior engineers. Additionally, he proactively identified potential issues, encouraging our team to adopt practices that ensured secure and reliable products.
One word that encapsulates Ryan is "guru," as he shared his knowledge transparently and generously.
Ryan is one of the most intelligent people I've ever had the pleasure of working with and being mentored by.
I thought I knew some things until I met him. He taught this old dog so many new tricks. My entire way of thinking has changed. My skills have grown in ways I didn't even know existed. He implemented so many things that seem common sense in hindsight but without his drive, persistence and devotion to improving the processes they would most likely never have come to fruition. From Terraform to Docker to micro-services and even documentation, he brought me and our company into the 22nd century.
His mastery of such a diverse pallet of software and technologies is admirable and aspiring. I honestly don't know where he gets the time! I was devastated when his departure was announced, but I'm glad to call him a friend; so we'll always stay in touch outside of work. Any company he chooses is lucky to have him on their team.
In the entrepreneurial world, there are companies known as "unicorns"; RyRy is a unicorn unto himself.
Ryan has helped deliver countless positive outcomes here at McGraw-Hill. The quality of his solutions, his coding, his documentation… they're all exceptional. When he engages in solving a particular business problem Ryan dives deep into all of the relevant domains and masters them. Even if it's a new tool or technique that he was previously unfamiliar with you can count on him to quickly get up to speed. You can ask him to tackle pretty much any problem and know that the solution is in good hands. Whether your problem is the humans or the machines, he can help.
If the highest form of praise for an engineer is to describe their impact, then I'll offer to you that Ryan has made a tremendous difference here that countless coworkers have felt and appreciated. If the highest form of praise for a human being is to describe the relationships formed, then I'll offer to you that Ryan made many good friends here and he will be missed. Whatever form of praise you prefer, Ryan has more than earned it. He is a rock star.
During my time with McGraw-Hill, Ryan was the person I tried to follow as much as I could. He sets a high bar for others to follow, and in my opinion, it made a big impact on different levels in the company. I learned a lot about best SRE practices by reading his documentation, by looking over Ryan's code in repos, in conversations and during weekly/bi-weekly team meetings and demos.
Also, when included in hiring interviews, it was great to read Ryan's logical and well structured feedback that made a lot of sense, and made hiring decisions easier.
Ryan is one of the most customer focused individuals I have worked with. He takes great pride in his work and is constantly evaluating how to improve the end user experience. He backs his opinions with customer feedback and data, and I often relied on Ryan to help me deliver a better experience to user, in a short period of time.