Piclo Operations & Settlement Modules

After securing a contract with ENEL (Italy's national entity for electricity) to become their local flexibility solution, I worked as the sole designer to bring Piclo's operations & settlement modules to life.

These two new modules would allow system operators and flexible service providers to undertake the full flexibility end to end process within Piclo.

Stakeholder Interviews

Understanding the needs of ENEL, a key European utility partner, was essential during the early development of Piclo’s operations and settlement modules. I conducted weekly discovery sessions with senior electricity infrastructure engineers to define expected outcomes, identify key risks, and align on how these modules would function within a flexibility marketplace.

To capture the full picture, I gradually developed an end-to-end journey map that outlined the critical steps both ENEL and prospective flexible service providers (FSPs) would need to follow to engage with the platform effectively.

In parallel, Piclo was working to mature its API offering. I was brought in to support the integrations team by identifying where new endpoints could be deployed, and by contributing to their design to ensure ease of use, scalability, and relevance to market needs.

Navigating the UK Flexibility Standards

To ensure our product offering could scale across regions, I became an in-house expert on the UK’s flexibility market structure. This included understanding the various service types (such as dynamic, static, and time-bound flexibility), market mechanisms, and platform interoperability requirements.

One of the most complex aspects was standardising baseline methodologies across different markets. Each region used different logic to determine what qualified as “normal” energy usage, which in turn affected how delivered flexibility would be measured. By identifying cross-market commonalities, I helped the team confidently implement both nomination and historical baselining approaches that were accepted by all major system operators.

Designing a Simple UI with Maximum Impact

With a tight timeline to onboard ENEL and begin trials, I worked closely with product managers to determine what features would constitute a minimum viable product while still supporting a usable, end-to-end experience for FSPs.

Key features included:

• Automated dispatch emails to alert FSPs when to provide flexibility services

• A meter data upload interface so providers could validate service delivery

Settlement reporting tools to help providers understand monthly payment breakdowns