Steven Williams

Professor Steven Williams is a Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Melbourne, part of the Faculty of Business and Economics. He serves as Director of Research at the Centre for Market Design, where he leads efforts in advancing theoretical and applied research in market design. Williams earned his PhD from Northwestern University. His research focuses on microeconomic theory, mechanism design, and information economics. These areas explore how economic mechanisms can achieve efficient outcomes under asymmetric information and strategic behavior.

Williams' contributions to economic theory are evidenced by his election as a Fellow of the Econometric Society in 2020, a prestigious honor recognizing excellence in theoretical and empirical economics. His scholarly impact is substantial, with over 3,200 citations on Google Scholar. Key publications include 'Realization and Nash implementation: two aspects of mechanism design' published in Econometrica in 1986, which addresses the realization of social choice functions through equilibria in games of incomplete information. Another significant work is 'Endowments, Exclusion, and Exchange' in Econometrica (2019), examining exchange economies with exclusion rights. He has also co-authored papers such as 'Trade of a Common Value Good' (2022) and contributions to optimal auction and market mechanism designs, including collaborations with Simon Loertscher on double clock auctions and simple market mechanisms. Williams participates in the Economic Theory and Experiments Unit and teaches advanced courses like Mathematical Economics (ECON30020). His work influences mechanism design applications in auctions, matching markets, and policy design.

Professional Email: steven.williams@unimelb.edu.au