By Engagement Insider
Michelle McKenna jokes that she tells her father he knew one of his children was going to make it to the NFL, he just bet on the wrong one.
McKenna’s brother, Chris Robinette, was an offensive lineman for the University of Alabama from 1987-92, played under Ray Perkins, Bill Curry and Gene Stallings, but never made it to the NFL. Now, his sister, who is an Auburn grad, has.
Last September, the NFL hired Michelle away from Constellation Energy in Baltimore, to be their senior vice president and CIO. She leads the league’s office information technology team to deliver innovative technology solutions.
McKenna admits she is a fan, but she is really more than a fan.
“I’ve always been a football fan. Growing up in Alabama, football was king, college football especially, but I followed the NFL, too. When this job opened, I said ‘oh my gosh’ this is great.’’
Before working for Constellation, McKenna was a vice president at both Universal Studios and for the Walt Disney Resorts.
From Walt Disney to the NFL covers just about the two top providers of entertainment in the country. If Disney World is really the greatest place on Earth, than Lambeau Field on a cold, fall Sunday might rank a close second.
“My kids think I’m the coolest mom in the world,’’ McKenna says with a chuckle about her son, Jack and her daughter, Maggie. “When they were little, I was working for Disney so they actually grew up in Disney World. Now, they’re older (16 and 17) and they get to go to the Super Bowl with me.’’
It’s not all fun for their mother, there is the work aspect of the job and that’s bringing modern day technology not just to the league in general, but specifically to each of its 32 teams as well.
“It is fun,’’ McKenna says. “But it’s challenging. When you’re dealing with 32 entities, you’re talking about a wide variety. You have some teams that are very forward in their thinking and then some where technology isn’t as high on their list.’’
So it becomes her job to keep the forward moving teams heading in the right direction and to try to get the rest up to speed.
“We’re doing it now,’’ she said. “We’re providing the teams with different statistical information for them on their players. And then we did a lot of work with them on the (April 25-27) draft, giving statistical information on the draftees.’’
McKenna’s duties involve coming up with innovative ways for teams to protect their players, which is a constant theme in the league today, while also keeping the fans entertained and walking through the turnstiles.
“We’re trying all the time to come up with different things that we think the fans want, or that the fans tell us they want,’’ she said. “We understand that it’s very easy to sit in the comfort of your home and watch games today. We also understand that there is nothing like being there in the moment. Now, what we have to do is provide the fan the excitement of being there with the comforts of home. Whether that’s getting replays, or updated stats on your handheld device, which fans seem to like, or getting in and out of the stadium easier.
“There’s a generational change now. It’s not the same as when your parents or grandparents went to games. We want to be able to keep up with what our fans want.’’
Michelle McKenna knew what she wanted, to work in the NFL. She reminds her father of that as she inches toward her first full year.
“It’s been great,’’ she said. “It’s everything I expected.’’