Nikki Mounts is the director of business operations at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI). She oversees strategic initiatives, finance, information technology and visitor operations. In this role, she directs the organization’s human resources and volunteer programs, revenue generation, budgeting and finance, procurement, information technology, visitor services, and education initiatives. She leads a team of over 50 staff and contractors and provides administrative support for more than 450 employees and 1,800 animals, while serving as a senior advisor to the Zoo's director on organizational strategy and financial health.

Prior to joining the Zoo, Mounts spent more than three years at the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, as its first chief of staff for the Information Technology Division, a department she helped establish. In that role, she developed and implemented critical financial processes, operational programs and new information technology capabilities.

Mounts is a 2006 graduate of the United States Military Academy and holds an MBA from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. She served eight years on active duty as a U.S. Army Signal Officer, including two tours in Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. 

After leaving active duty, she worked in the private sector as a senior project manager on subsea oil and gas projects for Alcoa in Houston, Texas. In 2016, she moved to the Washington, D.C., area and worked as a hospital administrator at the National Institutes of Health, providing business, finance, human resources, and acquisition support across several departments.

Mounts is a member and fellow of the American Council for Technology - Industry Advisory Council. She is a recipient of numerous military honors, including two Bronze Star Medals and the Meritorious Service Medal.