Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is in his eighth season with the 49ers and first as vice president, personnel & strategy. He rejoins San Francisco after most recently serving as the team's director of football research and development in 2019.
Prior to rejoining the 49ers, Adofo-Mensah served as general manager of the Minnesota Vikings for four seasons (2022- 25). In his four years as general manager, the Vikings saw two 13-win seasons in 2022 (13-4) and 2024 (14-3), that included multiple playoff berths and an NFC North title during the 2022 season, which was the team's first since 2017. Minnesota's 14 wins in 2024 were the second most in a single season in franchise history, trailing only the team's 15 victories in 1998.
During his time in Minnesota, Adofo-Mensah bolstered the Vikings roster during the 2024 offseason, signing multiple veteran free agents, three of whom – QB Sam Darnold, LB Jonathan Greenard and LB Andrew Van Ginkel – were voted to the 2025 NFL Pro Bowl. Adofo-Mensah's first selection in the 2023 NFL Draft – WR Jordan Addison (23rd overall) – became the 13th player in NFL history to record at least 900 receiving yards and 10 receiving touchdowns in his rookie season. During his first season as general manager, Adofo-Mensah signed QB Kirk Cousins to an extension, signed veteran free agent LB Za'Darius Smith and traded for TE T.J. Hockenson, all of which earned 2023 Pro Bowl honors. Additionally, Adofo-Mensah re-signed CB Patrick Peterson, who experienced one of the best seasons of his Hall of Fame career, registering five interceptions and 15 passes defended.
Adofo-Mensah also spent two seasons (2020-21) with the Cleveland Browns as their vice president, football operations, providing input to all roster and strategic football decisions and helping to oversee and manage the day-today operations of the team. During his tenure, the Browns snapped a 25-year playoff victory drought, defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers 48-37 in the AFC Wild Card Round.
From 2013-19, Adofo-Mensah spent seven seasons in various roles in San Francisco's personnel department where he led the team's efforts to develop and implement advanced quantitative methods for game strategy and personnel evaluation. He spent two seasons (2018-19) as director of football research and development after serving five seasons (2013-17) as the manager of football research and development.
Before entering the NFL with the 49ers, Adofo-Mensah began his professional career as an analyst at Morgan Stanley. He also served as an associate portfolio manager at Taylor Woods Capital and vice president/executive director at Credit Suisse as a commodities trader before going to graduate school.
In June of 2021, Adofo-Mensah led a session at the NFL and Black College Football Hall of Fame's fourth-annual Quarterback and Coaching Summit and inaugural Ozzie Newsome General Manager Forum, where he shared his personal story of his rise from a trader and portfolio manager on Wall Street to working in NFL front offices with a data-driven approach to finding talent while providing a quantitative view to grading a quarterback's short, medium and deep ball accuracy that could be used across the league.
The Cherry Hill, NJ, native received his bachelor's degree in economics from Princeton, where he also played JV basketball. Adofo-Mensah received his master's degree in economics from Stanford. He and his wife, Chelsea, have two sons, Duke and Weston.
