Ryan Kessenich is in his fourth season with the 49ers as an area scout. He joined San Francisco after spending 2018 as a consultant of Northwestern University's football team and the Reese's Senior Bowl.
Kessenich previously worked with the Chicago Bears as a pro/college scout (2013-14) and a national college scout (2015-17). In his roles, he evaluated top college players throughout the country and worked in multiple aspects of draft preparation. Prior to joining the Bears, Kessenich spent four seasons (2009-12) as a Midwest area college scout with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Before his time with Kansas City, Kessenich spent three seasons at Northwestern as a quality control/assistant recruiting coordinator (2006-07) and the director of player personnel/player development (2008). He first entered the NFL in a full-time capacity as a pro personnel assistant with Washington in 2005 following time as a training camp coordinator in 2003 and 2004 with the Chiefs.
Kessenich received a degree in finance and marketing from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2006. He also received a master's degree in sport management from Northwestern in 2008.
Kessenich and his wife, Ashley, reside in Madison, WI. The couple has two daughters, Kendall and Jordyn.