Monica Woods
Executive Vice President and COO
Monica M. Woods is executive vice president and chief operating officer. She most recently served as vice president for human resources and chief administrative officer at the Urban Institute. There, she led strategic and business-driven talent management programs, operations, and initiatives, and served as an officer on Urban’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council. Woods also led efforts to strengthen Urban’s administrative systems, policies, and processes to facilitate responsive staff support and service. Woods has comprehensive experience managing complex organizations and operations, including 15 years driving strategies to improve organizational performance. Before joining Urban, Woods was the associate director for workforce management and development at the Congressional Research Service and led people-focused programs and operations at the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security and Education. Woods holds a BA in political science from Spelman College and an MPA with a human resources concentration from American University.