For any government contractor, staying compliant with federal regulations is a full time job. Since 2016, that very important role at Atlantic Diving Supply has been filled by Nikki Williams.

A corporate, business and tax lawyer by trade, Nikki left her job handling corporate tax issues, mergers and acquisitions at private law firm Williams-Mullen to oversee Atlantic Diving Supply’s government compliance program. Since then, she’s been streamlining and formalizing policy, closing loops, tightening processes and training employees on the finer points of government compliance.

“It’s been refreshing,” she says. “Coming in-house, you’ve got one client and the same, singular goal as everyone else there. It’s a deeper dive and more fun that way.”

As the daughter of an Air Force Colonel, coming to a company like Atlantic Diving Supply “was even more icing on the cake,” offering her the chance to give back to the military that was such a large part of her upbringing.

“Informally, we figure out what our military or customers need, we go find the best product or solution to fit that need, and we get it to them the absolute quickest possible way,” she said. “It’s very rewarding.”

Equally rewarding is the work she does as the Executive Director of the company’s charitable arm, the Mission: Giveback Foundation, along with the many local boards and causes she serves in her off time, from the Virginia Aquarium and Women's Initiative Network to the Central Business District Association.

For this busy mom of two teenage daughters and firefighter’s wife, getting it all done well isn’t so much about striking that work-life balance everyone talks about. It’s about serving your priorities.

“If you’re at work and you have to leave to pick up a sick child, you do that,” she said. “If it's 8 p.m. and someone at work calls with a question, or you have to stay up late to finish something, you do that, too. You always do both. The higher priority at the time takes your priority at the time.”

And she’s happy to be doing it all while working at Atlantic Diving Supply, where employees are now returning from remote roles back to their “cool company culture,” where hard work is frequently rewarded with celebrations, giveaways, community volunteerism opportunities, rallies, raffles, trips and more.

“It feels famliy-ish here,” she says. “It’s got that small-company feel. New people come in, and it’s their first jobs, and we just want to keep reminding them how good they have it with these benefits. And just how good it is here.”