Ryen Macababbad

Hi! I'm Ryen, pronounced the same way as Ryan :)

I'm a Director of Cybersecurity for the Customer Architecture & Engineering (CAE) team at Microsoft.

My technical background is in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint AV/EDR, as well as Azure Active Directory, and various proprietary military systems.

I served in the U.S. Army for 8 years active duty and 6 years Reserve. I ended my terms of service as a Sergeant after deploying to both Iraq and Afghanistan.

I decided to transition out of active duty after suffering a number of traumas that led to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

My transition included a lot of preparation, an amazing transition program called the Microsoft Software & Systems Academy (MSSA), a WHOLE LOT of work, and a little bit of luck. The MSSA program provided me the opportunity to learn valuable tech skills that helped me land a position at Microsoft.

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I grew up in the "Greater" Seattle Area, and I really mean "Greater". I lived in several different foster homes and group homes surrounding the city. Many of the experiences that I had growing up were things no child should ever go through, including verbal, emotional, and physical abuse. But I can honestly say that without those experiences, I would not be the person that I am today.

Transitioning out of the foster care system was one of the most challenging events of my life. Statistically, I had a 33% chance of being homeless again, and that prospect frightened me. I took some college courses and attempted to find my fit in many different careers, failing several times before finding my passion for tech a couple of years into my military service.

The moral of this story? You can come from nothing and make something of yourself. I am a formerly homeless, foster kid alumni, minority woman and veteran with PTSD and NO BACHELOR'S degree who landed an engineering gig at MICROSOFT and have seen consistent accelerated career growth.

Don't let failure discourage you. Be Bold. Be Brave. Be Better. Do the thing. And #AlwaysBeLearning.

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For my passion projects, I love mentoring servicemembers and veterans looking to transition into tech careers and empowering women and POCs in IT to meet their goals. I'm also a maker and love building things and doing projects.

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You can read some of my articles on LinkedIn or connect with me via the social network buttons below!