Joanne Nicholson

Dr Joanne Nicholson joined RAND Australia in July 2019 after 20 years’ combined experience working in and across government, industry and academia, particularly in support of defence, national security and the intelligence community. As a highly experienced operations researcher, strategic analyst and futures specialist, Joanne works with a variety of agencies to ensure their investment programs are aligned to relevant and appropriate strategic objectives and designed to deliver the benefits that their organisations are seeking. She has extensive experience in technology forecasting and horizon scanning as well as related policy implications. At RAND her research has included supporting the Royal Australian Army and Navy in examining the role future technology and future thinking has within their organisations. She has also worked with both the Defence Science and Technology Group and the National Security Science and Technology Centre to identify critical technologies and opportunities for application of AI. Joanne holds a PhD in physical chemistry from Flinders University of South Australia.