Joseph McInerney, PhD
Joe McInerney is Founder and Principal at Annapolis Leadership, a leadership consulting firm that provides leader development support for clients in both corporate and academic settings. He is also the Director of Leadership and Ethics Education for the Knights of Columbus, an international fraternal association of more than two million members with headquarters in New Haven, CT.
Prior to assuming his current positions, Dr. McInerney served for thirty years in the U.S. Navy, retiring as a Captain in 2021. He was Chairman of the Department of Leadership, Ethics, and Law and Permanent Military Professor of Applied Ethics and Leadership at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Before joining the Naval Academy faculty, Captain McInerney served as a Surface Warfare Officer aboard USS Iwo Jima and USS Trenton. He completed two Mediterranean Sea deployments, participating in Operation Continue Hope, which executed the amphibious withdrawal of U. S. Marines from Somalia in March of 1994, as well as Operation Support Democracy in Haiti the following summer. In 2001, Captain McInerney transitioned to the Navy’s Human Resources community. Following his department head and executive officer tours, Captain McInerney became Director of the Navy’s Officer Candidate School recruiting mission and subsequently worked as an action officer on the Chief of Naval Operations staff in Washington DC.
Captain McInerney was a Fellow at the Stockdale Center for Ethical Leadership at the United States Naval Academy for the 2008-2009 academic year. In August of 2008, the Navy selected Dr. McInerney to its Permanent Military Professor Program. As a member of that program, he graduated from The Catholic University of America with a doctorate in moral philosophy after completing a dissertation on the ethics of St. Augustine. Captain McInerney also holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the United States Naval Academy and a Master of Theological Studies from the Pontifical Lateran University. In 2016, Captain McInerney published his first book, The Greatness of Humility: St. Augustine on Moral Excellence (Wipf &Stock, 2016). His most recent book, From Achilles to Superman: A Leader’s Guide to the History of Ethics, is currently under review with The Catholic University of America Press.
Prior to assuming his current positions, Dr. McInerney served for thirty years in the U.S. Navy, retiring as a Captain in 2021. He was Chairman of the Department of Leadership, Ethics, and Law and Permanent Military Professor of Applied Ethics and Leadership at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Before joining the Naval Academy faculty, Captain McInerney served as a Surface Warfare Officer aboard USS Iwo Jima and USS Trenton. He completed two Mediterranean Sea deployments, participating in Operation Continue Hope, which executed the amphibious withdrawal of U. S. Marines from Somalia in March of 1994, as well as Operation Support Democracy in Haiti the following summer. In 2001, Captain McInerney transitioned to the Navy’s Human Resources community. Following his department head and executive officer tours, Captain McInerney became Director of the Navy’s Officer Candidate School recruiting mission and subsequently worked as an action officer on the Chief of Naval Operations staff in Washington DC.
Captain McInerney was a Fellow at the Stockdale Center for Ethical Leadership at the United States Naval Academy for the 2008-2009 academic year. In August of 2008, the Navy selected Dr. McInerney to its Permanent Military Professor Program. As a member of that program, he graduated from The Catholic University of America with a doctorate in moral philosophy after completing a dissertation on the ethics of St. Augustine. Captain McInerney also holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the United States Naval Academy and a Master of Theological Studies from the Pontifical Lateran University. In 2016, Captain McInerney published his first book, The Greatness of Humility: St. Augustine on Moral Excellence (Wipf &Stock, 2016). His most recent book, From Achilles to Superman: A Leader’s Guide to the History of Ethics, is currently under review with The Catholic University of America Press.
