Since May, 2017, Jeffrey Williams has served as Founding Chairman of the Alliance for Market Solutions (AMS), an initiative of conservative Republican leaders encouraging fellow conservatives on the benefits of market-oriented approaches to advancing clean energy and reducing airborne carbon pollution.
He began serving as a Senior Advisor of Linden Trust for Conversation in November 2015. At LTC, he assisted on several initiatives, including the formulation and execution of a market based response to the issue of climate change that became
AMS.
Career Highlights
Mr. Williams devoted 34 years to his career as an investment banker, first with Morgan Stanley & Co., then as a Partner at Greenhill & Co. and, finally as the founder and Chairman of Jeffrey Williams & Co LLC. The better part of his professional career was spent in providing strategic financial advice to the telecommunications, media and technology industries.
While at Morgan Stanley, he was the principal financial advisor to the senior management of AT&T, assisting the Company on a number of landmark strategic and financial initiatives, including: the successful separation of Lucent Technologies and NCR from the Company’s core communications services business; the $3.0 billion Initial Public Offering of Lucent Technologies (up until that time the largest, non-privatization IPO); the $23 billion acquisition of McCaw Communications; the issuance of $1.7 billion of equity in 1995 and the acquisition of NCR.
Further, while at Morgan Stanley, he advised Companie Generale d’ Electricite in the $7.0 billion combination of their telecom equipment business with the similar business of ITT to create Alcatel. He also advised IBM on its $3.0 billion emergency financing package, lead managing the $1.8 billion debt component of this package (at the time, the largest investment grade bond offering ever).
At Greenhill, he led the Firm’s team that advised the United States Department of Justice on the financial implications of the proposed remedy in the antitrust action known as U.S. v. Microsoft.
Finally, at Jeffrey Williams & Co., he served as the lead advisor in the successful defense of Leap Wireless in the face of the unilateral bid by Metro PCS. He also advised the shareholders of Pegaso PCS, the largest, independent nationwide Mexican wireless provider on its financial restructuring and sale to Telefonica d’Espana for $1.5 billion.
Leadership Highlights
Mr. Williams served for 20 years as Trustee of the University of Cincinnati Foundation, a private sector affiliate of the University of Cincinnati. For six years, he served as Chairman of this 135 employee fundraising organization, leading it through the planning and initiation of its successful landmark $1.0 billion “Proudly Cincinnati” capital campaign.
He served as Trustee of the International Center of Photography for 12 years and led the institution’s facility planning efforts for a new museum and expanded school operations. Mr. Williams served on the institution’s Executive Committee for seven years.
He was the Founding Republican Co-Chair of Environmental Defense Fund Action, the political advocacy affiliate of the Environmental Defense Fund. He served in that capacity for six years and still serves on EDFA’s Board as Chair of its Finance and Audit Committee and as a member of the Executive Committee.
He serves on the Board of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, a well-regarded policy think tank, formerly known as the Pew Center on Global Climate Change. At C2ES. he is the Chair of the Finance Committee.
He served for ten years as a Trustee of the New Canaan Public Library as well as a Board member and Chairman of the New Canaan Community Foundation. He was recently appointed to New Canaan’s Affordable Housing Committee, a volunteer comprised organization that is charged with expanding the role of the Town in the provision of affordable housing.
As a resident of New Canaan, he served as volunteer negotiator of the well-received settlement of contentious land-use litigation involving Silver Hill Hospital and the Silvermine River Neighborhood Association. As a result of this agreement, SRNA supported the Hospital’s successful application to the local Planning and Zoning Commission for a limited addition to its neighborhood footprint. In exchange, the Hospital agreed to forebear from further expansion for 55 years.
He earned a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Cincinnati and a Master of Business Administration (with Honors) from the Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration. In 2013, he returned to Harvard as a Fellow at the Advanced Leadership Institute.
He is married, has two adult sons and is a resident of New Canaan, Connecticut.