[13] Tennille was known for technological innovations, such as launching an electronic filing system in 1999; creating a website for such filings and for providing court documents and information to the public, which was rated a top 10 website in 2007; developing high tech courtrooms; and partnering with law schools to provide facilities and offices to the Business Court judges, including high tech courtrooms at the law schools.
[14] Tennille was also innovative in making use of early alternative dispute resolution, for example, having parties attend early case management conferences, and not simply their lawyers, and having the lawyers provide litigation cost estimates at the beginning of the case.
[23] In December 2009, he made a presentation to the Business Impact Committee of the State Bar of Michigan's Judicial Crossroads Task Force.
[25] Tennille was in private practice from 1971 to 1985, and was in-house counsel at Burlington Industries, Inc. from 1985 to 1995 (serving as a human resources director from 1993 to 1995).
[29] After retirement, Tennille and his wife (a pediatrician) established H.O.P.E of Winston-Salem (Help Our People Eat), an organization dedicated to addressing food insecurity issues and children's health, in and around Forsyth County, North Carolina.