Oliver Williamson: The Man Who Reduced the Transaction Cost of Economics

Abstract

On May 21st, one of the most cited economists of all time and a key contributor to organizational studies, Professor Oliver E. Williamson passed away. Despite being ubiquitous across economics, management, law and social sciences, he remains underappreciated in mainstream development and policy discourse in developing countries. In this article, we demonstrate his ideas; and their tenacity, versatility and simplicity. We show that his intellectual apparatus of transaction cost economics is indeed a powerful tool to explain a range of real-life phenomena across a variety of disciplines with impeccable practical implications. We also examine his methodological approach and integrity that will guide substantive and pragmatic inquiry for generations to come.

Keywords: Oliver Williamson, Transaction Cost Economics, New Institutional Economics

JEL Classification: D23, D02, B15