Key members of the Kansas City Chiefs organization who worked closely with Ryan Poles are raving about him and the Bears' decision to hire the 36-year-old as their new general manager.

Poles joined the Bears Tuesday after spending the last 13 seasons with the Chiefs, steadily climbing the ranks within their personnel department. He was initially hired by Kansas City as a player personnel assistant in 2009 before being promoted to college scouting administrator in 2010, college scouting coordinator in 2013, director of college scouting in 2017, assistant director of player personnel in 2018 and executive director of player personnel in 2021.

"My family and I are excited for Ryan as he embarks on his new role with the Chicago Bears," said Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt. "Ryan made significant contributions to the success of our player personnel department over the last 13 years, and I know he will do a great job in Chicago. He has a proven track record as a talent evaluator, and his experience, attention to detail and football acumen will make him an outstanding general manager. We wish Ryan, (his wife) Katie and their family nothing but the best in this new chapter."

During Poles' tenure, the Chiefs became one of the NFL's elite organizations. In each of the past six seasons, Kansas City has captured the AFC West Division championship and recorded double-digit victories, winning two conference titles and Super Bowl LIV to cap the 2019 season.

In Poles' lone year as Chiefs director of college scouting (2017), Kansas City traded up in the first round of the draft to select quarterback Patrick Mahomes at No. 10.

Poles worked for three general managers with the Chiefs: Scott Pioli, John Dorsey and Brett Veach.

"This is a tremendous hire by the Chicago Bears," said Chiefs coach Andy Reid. "Ryan has worked hard to get to this point in his career, and he's seen it done a number of different ways. He's earned the chance to run his own personnel department and I'm looking forward to watching him get to work building their roster."

This Sunday, the Chiefs will become the first team in NFL history to host four straight conference title games. This season, six Kansas City players were voted to the Pro Bowl: Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce, receiver Tyreek Hill, left tackle Orlando Brown, defensive tackle Chris Jones and safety Tyrann Mathieu. 

"Ryan has been an integral part of this organization's success over the years and has grown professionally alongside some of the league's top personnel people in his time in Kansas City," said Veach, who joined the Chiefs personnel department in 2013 and has served as general manager since 2017. "I've personally enjoyed working with him since I arrived in Kansas City in 2013 and know he is ready for this opportunity. 

"The Chicago Bears are getting a hard-working, meticulous and personable leader who has a vision for how to build a winning team on the field and establish a winning culture off of it. I am incredibly excited for Ryan and his family as they begin this journey in Chicago."