Professor Williams began his career at The UWI as a Lecturer in the Department of Management Studies (DOMS). He was very active on various committees and on taskforces.
Between 2010-12, he was Head of the department; during his time as HOD, research output grew by 50% and the department was awarded the faculty prize for best customer service 2 years in a row.
In 2012, DOMS and the Mona School of Business (MSB) merged to create the Mona School of Business and Management Studies (MSBMS). Professor Williams was named Deputy Executive Director at that time.
From 2012-2017, he was also campus coordinator of The UWI's Strategic Plan.
In 2014, he was named Executive Director of MSBMS, a position he held until 2016.
Professor Williams and Sir Kenneth Hall at the Inaugural MSBM Conference on Business and Management in 2015
In 2016, Professor Williams was appointed Pro Vice Chancellor for Academic, Industry Partnership and Planning. He led the University Office of Planning (UOP) until 2020, facilitating the implementation and monitoring of the Triple A Strategic Plan 2017-2022. The UOP provided technical advisory support in the areas of Strategic Planning, Business Intelligence and Institutional Research, Economic Engagement and Industry Partnership and Business Process Re-engineering and Policy Management.
An impactful achievement during his tenure as Pro Vice Chancellor was the proposal for the establishment of the fifth campus of The UWI in Antigua and Barbuda.
The Five Islands Campus commenced operation in 2019, with the stated goals of providing a development platform for the countries of the OECS and expanding The UWI’s regional capacity to deliver higher education for the 21st century..
Another important achievement was The UWI's successful strategic engagement with the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings. Set to achieve this goal by 2023, the UOP took the lead in this venture, with insight into the characteristics and methodology and understanding that the rankings could be used to assist with strategic planning, marketing and branding to improve operational performance and enhance The UWI's future ranking.
However, The UWI celebrated the resounding surpassing of this target in 2020, as the institution secured three top spots:
The UWI was the only Caribbean University to be ranked.
Professor Williams in technical meeting on private sector engagement in 2017
The Five Islands Campus of the University of the West Indies (FIC) began operation on September 27, 2019. Professor Williams was installed as the first permanent Principal and Pro Vice Chancellor in August 2020, replacing interim Pro Vice Chancellor Professor Stafford Griffith. He held this position until his appointment as Principal of the Mona Campus beginning in August 2023.
Located in Five islands Village in Antigua, on the grounds of Antigua State College, FIC is the fourth physical campus of the UWI, but the first to be located in the Eastern Caribbean, where enrollment in tertiary education is lower than in any other Caribbean sub-region. Upon his installation, the new Principal immediately rolled out a suite of growth inducement projects for the Campus.
To ensure alignment with the second phase of the Triple A Plan, The Revenue Revolution, there was strict adherence to the schedule of governance meetings, as well as critical and strategic meetings. The key pillar to the growth of the FIC was firmly established to be collaboration, and the leadership focused on strategic positioning of the campus and sought to maintain close alignment with government and industry.
Despite COVID restrictions, FIC has experienced incredible growth. The Vice Chancellor's Report for 2021/2022 commended an increase in enrollment at FIC by 41.5%. Other significant achievements include:
Professor Williams and members of the FIC team with visiting members of the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2022