Analyst Profile

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Rick Nicholson

Vice President of Research

Rick Nicholson, with more than twenty five years of experience in IT and other emerging technologies in the energy industry, leads IDC Energy Insights.

In this role, Mr. Nicholson has global responsibility for IDC Energy Insights’ research-based advisory and consulting offerings, which provide full coverage of information, communications and emerging energy technologies across both the utilities and oil & gas segments. Mr. Nicholson's experience has given him a thorough understanding of market dynamics, business strategies and processes, and technology solutions. He is a recognized and highly respected expert in the alignment of business and technology strategies and the successful deployment of technology to enable smart grids and other game-changing initiatives.

Mr. Nicholson blogs regularly in the IDC Energy Insights Community (http://idc-insights-community.com/energy) and tweets (@rlnicholson2) about business and IT issues relevant to the new energy economy.

Mr. Nicholson has worked with clients in North America, Europe and Asia. His previous experience includes positions with research, consulting, and technology firms where he was responsible for sales, marketing, and delivery activities across various markets including utilities, communications, public sector, and earth resources.

Mr. Nicholson has been a contributing writer to a variety of energy industry publications including Public Utilities Fortnightly, Intelligent Utility and Electric Light & Power. He is a regular speaker at industry conferences, has been interviewed on national television news programs and is frequently quoted in the mainstream media. He holds B.A. and M.A. degrees from the State University of New York at Buffalo.



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Research Authored by Rick Nicholson

Business Strategy: Capital Project Management in the Oil and Gas Industry
Rick Nicholson, Roberta Bigliani, Catherine Madden
Aug 2010 - Doc # EI224331      Business Strategy
This IDC Energy Insights report examines the benchmark study conducted by IDC Energy Insights regarding the maturity of information technology (IT) systems at oil and gas companies to manage large capital projects at an enterprise level. ...
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Worldwide Oil and Gas Industry IT Spending Guide, 2009–2014, Version 1, 2010
Catherine Madden, Jill Feblowitz, Rick Nicholson, Nina Bonagura, Giuliana Folco, Roberta Bigliani, Gary Koch, Roman Maceska, Renato Troya, Chin-Boon Lim, Milan Kalal
Aug 2010 - Doc # EI224516      Pivot Table
This IDC Energy Insights Pivot Table provides a detailed methodology and taxonomy for Energy Insights' Worldwide Oil and Gas Industry IT Spending Guide. Key points include::
  • The oil and gas industry is a dynamic and at times vo
  • ...
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    2010 UtiliQ Rankings: Top 25 Intelligent Utilities
    Jill Feblowitz, Rick Nicholson
    Aug 2010 - Doc # EI224340      Perspective
    This IDC Energy Insights Perspective discusses the top 25 intelligent utilities in the United States in 2009. This is the second annual UtiliQ ranking of U.S. electric utilities — a list of the top 25 intelligent utilities based on a det ...
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    IT Impacts from the BP Oil Spill
    Rick Nicholson, Catherine Madden, Jill Feblowitz
    Jul 2010 - Doc # EI224330      Perspective
    This IDC Energy Insights Perspective discusses the IT impacts from the BP oil spill. With the BP oil spill successfully capped, at least temporarily, and the completion of a relief well in sight, it's time to look forward and assess the ...
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    Creating a Recipe for Success: Trilliant's $106 Million Burrito
    Marcus Torchia, Rick Nicholson
    Jul 2010 - Doc # lcUS22430510      IDC Link
     Last week, California-based smart grid communications vendorTrilliant announced that it raised $106 million in its latest round of investment funding. Investments came from two investment firms and two utility industry giants. The investme ...
    Insights on Utilities: EMEA Edition — July 2010
    Roberta Bigliani, Gaia Gallotti, Rick Nicholson
    Jul 2010 - Doc # EIOS55S      Perspective
    Welcome to this issue of Insights on utilities, EMEA edition. We periodically distribute this document to share analysis of and opinions on key trends in the utilities industry. Please forward this newsletter to your colleagues or others ...
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    Smart Grid Investment Perspective: January–May 2010
    Rick Nicholson, Marcus Torchia, Sam Jaffe
    Jun 2010 - Doc # EI223857      Perspective
    This IDC Energy Insights Perspective presents an analysis of publicly announced investments in smart grid technologies for the January–May 2010 period in the North American market. It focuses exclusively on smart grid technology and thus ...
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    Solar Investment Perspective: January–May 2010
    Rick Nicholson, Sam Jaffe, Jay Holman
    Jun 2010 - Doc # EI223627      Perspective
    This IDC Energy Insights Perspective presents an analysis of publicly announced investments in solar technologies for the period January–May 2010 in the North American market. It focuses exclusively on solar technology and thus ...
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    ABB Acquires Ventyx — Convergence Between OT and IT Just Got Closer
    Jill Feblowitz, Rick Nicholson, Marcus Torchia
    May 2010 - Doc # lcUS22333210      IDC Link
    The utility industry has been talking about the fact that lines are blurring between operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) for the last few years and especially since the smart grid has taken off. Now ABB is accelerati ...
    Best Practices: CIOs Move from 2009 Spending Limits to 2010 Projects
    Jill Feblowitz, Rick Nicholson, Marcus Torchia
    Apr 2010 - Doc # EI222869      Best Practices
    This IDC Energy Insights report provides findings from three surveys recently conducted by IDC Energy Insights and IDC Vertical Group that provide insight on utility information and communications technology (ICT) spending and ...
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    More Research authored by Rick Nicholson