Nicole Monsma
Virginia Beach native, business leader, and urban planning strategist committed to building a more unified and prosperous Hampton Roads.
Nicole Monsma is a Virginia Beach native and longtime advocate for the Hampton Roads region. Having spent much of her adult life living and working across the United States and internationally, she brings to Future of Hampton Roads — where she serves as Board Secretary and Website Manager — a rare combination of front-line business leadership, formal training in urban and regional planning, and the perspective of someone who has seen firsthand what thriving regions do differently.
Nicole has been a Senior Sales Executive in resort real estate and hospitality since 2009, beginning with Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific before joining Diamond Resorts International — now part of Hilton Grand Vacations — where she has consistently ranked among the top performers nationally for more than a decade. Known for ethical, high-conversion sales and near-zero cancellation rates, she has been selected for strategic domestic and international assignments including extended placement in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur. Earlier in her career, she served as Marketing Director at Nationwide Business Brokers, and Account Executive at Beneficial Finance Company, where she ranked in the top 10 of more than 300 executives nationwide. Before entering the business world full-time, she taught English in South Korea. Her career and graduate studies have taken her across the country — including Las Vegas, Scottsdale, and Sedona — and internationally to Australia, South Korea, and Mexico, giving her a first-hand perspective on what distinguishes regions that invest in themselves from those that don't.
Her academic background reflects a sustained commitment to understanding how regions grow, connect, and thrive. Nicole holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Marketing from Old Dominion University, where she graduated with honors on a full academic scholarship. She earned a Master's degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Sydney, Australia, completed graduate studies in Real Estate Development at Auburn University, and holds a post-graduate certificate in Real Estate Development Finance from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Nicole brings that planning and development perspective directly to her work at FHR, contributing to regional conversations around placemaking, infrastructure, and the quality-of-life investments that make Hampton Roads a competitive and livable region. She has served on the FHR Board of Directors since 2019. She is a certified Wilderness First Responder through NOLS and a PADI-certified Search and Rescue and Deep Water Diver.