Ed Policy, you might say, was born to be a professional football executive

His father, Carmen Policy, spent more than 20 years in leadership positions with the San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns for over 20 years, becoming president of the 49ers and later the president and CEO of the Browns.

Policy’s father worked for the 49ers from 1981 to 1997, running the team as president the past seven of those years. For much of that time, he commuted between Youngstown, Ohio — where Ed and his four siblings were raised — and the Bay Area. For Ed, it was an early education in the business of football.

“We talked about the NFL and the business of the NFL and pro football every night at the dinner table,” Ed said. “As I got a little bit older and began to understand some of the business things he was dealing with, I mean, to this day I will tell you I rely on the lessons I’ve learned from him.

“There was a lot of fun to it — winning Super Bowls and celebrating Super Bowls and drinking champagne were great memories — but the things I really rely on now, the lessons, are really watching him struggle through some of the tougher times.”

Ed earned his undergraduate degree from Notre Dame in accounting in 1993, then went on to Stanford Law School, while his father moved to the Bay Area full time to run the 49ers. He began his career working at law firms in San Francisco, then Cleveland, with an emphasis on  litigation, sports labor relations, sports facility construction and commercial real estate.

From 2001-09, Policy worked for the Arena Football League, as deputy commisoner and president, the acting commissioner.  Following was a brief stint as executive consultant to the National Football League.

Policy joined the Green Bay Packers organization on Aug. 1, 2012 as vice president and general counsel. The Packers promoted him to chief operating office and general counsel on Jan. 17, 2018. He was unanimously elected chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer by the Packers board of directors in June of 2024, replacing the retiring Mark Murphy, and assumed the role in July of 2025.

It wasn’t a foregone conclusion that Policy would be offered the Packers’ top job. The team’s executive committee hired a national search to identify candidates. One of those considered was Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider, a Green Bay area native.

“I felt that was a very professional approach,” Carmen Policy said of the Packers’ decision, adding: “He’s so much better than me. I mean that sincerely. He’s smarter, he’s more disciplined, he’s more patient, and patience can be so important at certain times.”

In his time with the Packers, Ed Policy has helped the team develop the Titletown District — a “downtown” of hotels, restaurants, and special events spaces across from Lambeau Field — as well as take on more responsibility in the business operations of the team.

Policy is a three-time recipient of the SportsBusiness Journal’s Forty Under 40 award in recognition of his achievements in sports business, and a member of the Forty Under 40 Hall of Fame. He is fully involved in the Green Bay community, having served on the boards of the Greater Green Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Green Bay YMCA, Brown County United Way and the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation.