David DiNapoli
Executive Coach
David DiNapoli is an executive coach and risk leader whose career has ranged from the back of an ambulance to the boardroom, giving him a rare, ground-level understanding of how frontline pressure shapes leadership.
In 2024, David founded Smokerise Partnership, an executive coaching and leadership development practice, where he serves as Principal. He works with leaders navigating new roles, career transitions, and crises, helping them find their voice and build more effective organizations. The practice reflects a throughline in his career: a consistent focus on leading people through high-stakes, high-pressure environments, whether in an ambulance, a police department, or the C-suite.
He began his career in emergency medical services in the early 1990s, working as an EMT and paramedic, before moving into law enforcement as a police officer in both municipal and campus police departments. That operational foundation led him into executive roles, first as Chief of Police at a college campus, where he modernized the department around community policing and risk reduction.
Over the two decades that followed, David built a career at the intersection of safety, security, and organizational risk. He served as Chief Security Officer and Senior Director of Environmental Operations in a multicampus healthcare organization. He went on to lead safety and security for New England's largest day shelter and later served as Risk Manager for a state forensic hospital, where he also managed the institution's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He subsequently directed facilities and safety for a large social service organization in downtown Boston, which hosts a women's health clinic, homeless outreach, and a counseling and recovery center. He currently serves in a leadership role for safety compliance with a public transit agency.
David is a doctoral student in Executive Leadership at the University of Charleston. He holds a master’s degree in justice administration from Norwich University, a graduate certificate in executive coaching from William James College, and a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from Roger Williams University.
Beyond his professional work, David serves as a volunteer partner with the American Red Cross's Regional Donor Services Executive program in Massachusetts and as a community member of Verve Therapeutics' Institutional Biosafety Committee.
David is based in Massachusetts and has worked with clients from across the United States, South America, and Africa.
