With Mark Andrus retiring later this summer, Grant Thornton needed to find someone to succeed him as leader of the firm’s R&D Tax Credit Services practice. GT did, and he has Big 4 chops:
Keith Nickels has joined Grant Thornton LLP as a Tax partner and national leader of the firm’s Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit Services practice.
In this role, Nickels will use a data-forward strategy to transform the firm’s R&D Tax Credit service delivery model for the digital age. Nickels succeeds Mark Andrus in this role, who is retiring on July 31, 2021. Andrus concludes a 21-year career as Grant Thornton’s R&D Tax Credit Services practice leader.
Nickels has nearly 25 years of public accounting experience with a focus on the R&D tax credit and accounting methods technical areas. He has worked across a large variety of industries, including technology, life sciences, media and entertainment, and aerospace and defense. He specializes in IRS exam controversy and has worked with Fortune 500 and middle-market companies.
Prior to joining Grant Thornton, Nickels was a partner in the Specialized Tax Services group and leader of the Life Sciences R&D Tax Credit practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he led and managed the pursuit and delivery of tax services related to the R&D tax credit and Section 174 expenditures. Before that, he spent more than 20 years with Ernst & Young LLP’s (EY) Tax practice. While at EY, Nickels spent eight years in the national Tax department focused on the R&D tax credit and led the firm’s New York R&D Tax Credit practice.
Nickels didn’t spend a lot of time at PwC; only a year and a half as leader of the Life Sciences R&D Tax Credit practice, according to his LinkedIn profile. As the release says, EY was where Nickels cut his Big 4 teeth.
All in all, seems like Nickels was a good hire for the Purple Rose of Chicago.
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