Judy Faulkner: The Healthcare Software Pioneer

Judith R. Faulkner (born 1943) is the founder and CEO of Epic Systems, one of the largest healthcare software companies in the United States. Her company's software handles the medical records of over 250 million Americans, fundamentally transforming how medical information is managed across the country.

Born Judith R. Greenfield in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Faulkner's early influences shaped her future career path. Her father Louis owned a neighborhood pharmacy, while her mother Del was engaged in social responsibility initiatives—a combination foreshadowing Faulkner's future work at the intersection of healthcare and technology.^[1]

Faulkner earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Dickinson College in 1965, followed by a master's degree in computer science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1967. This background in mathematics and computer science—unusual for women of her generation—provided the technical foundation for her later innovations in healthcare information systems.^[2]

In 1979, with an initial investment of $70,000 from friends and family, Faulkner founded Human Services Computing (later renamed Epic Systems) in a basement in Madison, Wisconsin. Working alongside psychiatrist Dr. John Greist, she began developing software to manage patient information for University Hospital and Clinics.^[3]

From its inception, Faulkner made crucial decisions that differentiated Epic from competitors. Perhaps most significantly, she kept the company private—refusing venture capital and maintaining complete control over its direction. This allowed Epic to focus on long-term innovation rather than quarterly profits, a strategy that proved remarkably successful over the decades.^[4]

As the healthcare industry digitized, Epic's comprehensive electronic health record system gained traction with major healthcare providers. Faulkner prioritized interoperability and user-centered design, ensuring that clinical needs drove technological development rather than the reverse. This focus has helped Epic secure approximately 40% of the U.S. hospital market share.^[5]

Faulkner's leadership style, often described as "Mission Impossible," focuses on solving complex problems through logical persistence. Employees at Epic describe a culture where innovation is expected and mediocrity is unacceptable—a direct reflection of Faulkner's own standards.^[6]

Unlike many tech CEOs, Faulkner eschews publicity and flashy leadership tactics. Her approach is pragmatic, data-driven, and notably free from the self-promotion common in the technology sector. Epic's campus in Verona, Wisconsin—a whimsical complex featuring themed meeting rooms and treehouse conference spaces—reflects her belief that creativity and technical rigor can coexist productively.^[7]

Epic's impact on American healthcare has been profound. The company's Care Everywhere platform enables seamless sharing of medical information between different healthcare providers, addressing long-standing interoperability challenges. By 2024, Epic systems were facilitating over 2 billion patient record exchanges annually, significantly reducing duplicate testing and medical errors.^[8]

Faulkner's achievements have earned her numerous accolades, including recognition on Forbes' list of America's most successful self-made women, with a reported net worth of approximately $7.8 billion as of 2024. She has also received honorary doctorates from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Mount Sinai's Icahn School of Medicine for her contributions to healthcare informatics.^[9]

Beyond technical innovation, Faulkner has influenced healthcare policy, serving on the Health Information Technology Policy Committee, which advised the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on standards for electronic health record implementation.^[10]

In 2015, Faulkner signed the Giving Pledge, committing to donate 99% of her assets to philanthropy. This decision reflected her long-standing belief that wealth carries social responsibility. "I never had any personal desire to be a wealthy billionaire," she has explained. "I'd like the money to do good things."^[11]

To fulfill this commitment, Faulkner and her husband, pediatrician Dr. Gordon Faulkner, established the Roots & Wings Foundation in 2019. The foundation focuses on addressing childhood poverty and basic needs through trust-based philanthropy, providing unrestricted funding to organizations working in food security, housing stability, and early education.^[12]

Under the direction of Shana Dall'Osto, Faulkner's daughter, Roots & Wings has distributed approximately $200 million between 2020 and 2024, with plans to scale annual giving to $100 million by 2027. The foundation's approach emphasizes minimal administrative burdens for grantees, reflecting Faulkner's problem-solving ethos.^[13]

At 81, Faulkner continues to lead Epic, maintaining her hands-on approach to product development and company culture. As healthcare embraces artificial intelligence and personalized medicine, the infrastructure she built positions Epic to integrate these advances into clinical practice.

Despite her enormous wealth and influence, Faulkner maintains her characteristic humility. When asked about metrics for success, she has consistently pointed away from financial benchmarks: "The question is, did we do a good job for our customers? How many lives did we make better?"^[14]

Through five decades of leadership, Judy Faulkner has demonstrated that technological innovation, ethical business practices, and social responsibility can coexist and reinforce one another. Her legacy spans from the millions of patients whose care has been improved through Epic's systems to the next generation of healthcare technology leaders who have been influenced by her example.

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Judith Faulkner, Founder and CEO of EPIC Systems