06-03-2025
Michael Weber is excited about the potential of the Mitch Daniels School of Business, and he wants to be part of the growth process. Weber will join the finance faculty this fall through Purdue’s Moveable Dream Hires program, which is designed to attract high-performing, top-caliber faculty to the university even when the topic-based openings in a given year do not match the moveable talent.
“Purdue and the Daniels School have a strong research reputation in finance and economics, and with the university’s commitment to the school, I want to be a part of something that’s expanding and thriving,” says Weber, an associate professor of finance who has served on the Chicago Booth faculty since 2014. “We’re increasing the size of the faculty, which will help us in our goal to be a top 10 business school.”
Weber was born in Germany and earned his master’s and doctoral degrees at the University of California, Berkeley. He has two main streams of research. The first is in finance and centers on areas including asset pricing and return predictability in a data-rich environment. The other is in macroeconomics with a focus on how agents form expectations and the ability of central banks to manage them. That research led him to several prior interactions with Jim Bullard, the Dr. Samuel R. Allen Dean of the Daniels School and former president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, another factor that pointed Weber toward West Lafayette.
“Michael Weber is a standout economist whose groundbreaking research is shaping the way we understand inflation, financial markets and economic behavior,” says Mara Faccio, Tom and Patty Hefner Chair of Finance in the Daniels School. “From asset pricing to household finance, his work dives deep into how people form beliefs about inflation, and how those beliefs drive real-world decisions. At a time when inflation is front and center, his insights are not just timely but vital, influencing top institutions like the European Central Bank and the Fed.
“With an exceptional track record of over 10,000 citations, dozens of top-tier publications, and cutting-edge studies, he’s widely recognized as one of the most dynamic voices in macro-finance today.”
Due to his prolific research, Weber has been selected for a Humboldt Professorship, with 5 million euros over five years — the highest-endowed research prize in Germany. This award will foster his innovative approach in linking marcoeconomic theory with behavioral economics through the foundation of the European Expectations Center.
Weber, who enjoys traveling, is an avid cyclist, logging 8,000 miles last year. He’s at 3,000 so far in 2025 and looking forward to the bike trails around Purdue. He’s also ready to dig into his work at the Daniels School.
“It’s a great honor to be a part of the Dream Hires program,” he says. “I feel the pressure to keep up with my research and live up to the trust that the university and the school have put in me.”
