Chairman and Founder of Phoenix International, Bill McInerney is a lifelong resident of suburban Chicago. Bill and his wife Mimi have four children. Mimi played an important role during the business startup years before becoming a full time mother. Two of their children continue the family tradition by working in the Newark and Corporate Branches.

A graduate of Loyola University of Chicago, Bill went on to serve two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Somalia. He then worked as a school teacher and an insurance agent for several years prior to entering the freight forwarding industry. Bill founded Phoenix International in 1979.

Bill has been an industry leader in political affairs affecting the freight forwarding community. He served as president of the American International Freight Association, and worked extensively with the Pacific Coast Council. In these trade organizations, Bill devoted considerable energy towards promoting the deregulation of the ocean freight industry. He currently leads a Chicago lobbying group focused on gaining support for the completion of an expressway that would allow western access to Chicago's O'Hare Airport. Bill is a bona fide aviation nut and has owned and flown five different aircraft over the past twenty years.