Staff Highlight: Michał "rysiek" Woźniak

Staff Highlight: Michał “rysiek” Woźniak

At Quad9, we aim to show appreciation for the dedication of our staff and their contributions to the growth and health of the organization by showcasing quarterly staff highlights. This quarter, we are featuring Senior Operations Engineer, Michał “rysiek” Woźniak.

As a Senior Operations Engineer, rysiek plays a crucial role in maintaining and advancing the technical backbone of Quad9. His daily responsibilities center on infrastructure automation and server management, with a focus on ensuring high visibility and reliability across systems. “When managing infrastructure like Quad9, automation and visibility are paramount,” rysiek explains. “If we do not see something graphed or displayed on a dashboard, even if we technically know about it, it is as good as if it didn’t exist.”

Before joining Quad9, rysiek held several influential roles, most notably at the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), where he rose to the dual position of Chief Information Security Officer and Head of Infrastructure. His tenure at OCCRP included critical work during the lead-up to the Panama Papers publication, ensuring operational security and scalable infrastructure during a time of heightened risk. “This was the first time I was working in such a high-risk context,” rysiek recalls. “My actions and decisions had real life consequences for people in very real danger, who trusted me to keep them (digitally) safe.”

That experience not only sharpened rysiek’s technical skills but also deepened his understanding of building resilient systems. “Everyone makes mistakes, no exceptions,” he says. “Systems–technical, administrative, or social–need to be built such that they are resilient to human error.” These lessons now inform his work at Quad9, where our small team delivers impactful, global-scale services. “Quad9 is a small organization punching way above its weight, focused on protecting people who use our service.”

Rysiek’s transition to Quad9 was a natural continuation of a career devoted largely to mission-driven nonprofits. “At some point I understood that these kinds of small, mission-driven organizations are where I thrive,” he says. When a friend pointed out an opening at Quad9, it felt like the right fit. “It’s refreshing to work with remarkably competent techies who recognize that technology is never neutral and how important the human aspect of it is.”

Since joining, rysiek has led several critical internal projects, including the development of an encrypted overlay network using WireGuard and a compliance testing harness that boosts internal network visibility. “Both of these projects took a fair amount of time and effort, especially in the design phase. But once they were implemented, we quickly started seeing them pay off in a lot of different ways.”

With a career rooted in mission-driven work, rysiek brings thoughtful expertise to Quad9’s technical operations. “Quad9’s resources may be very limited compared to a lot of much bigger organizations,” he says, “but we recognize the importance of careful, thoughtful design, and give ourselves the space and time to do it well.”