Judith Faulkner - Fierce Women to Watch in Health IT

Who: Judith Faulkner

Current position: CEO, Epic Systems

Location: Verona, Wisc.

Fast facts: After earning her Master's degree in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin, Faulkner founded Epic Systems in 1979. She also taught computer science within UW system, and has worked as a healthcare software developer (she created one of the first databases organized around a patient record).

Why she's so fierce: Faulkner founded and runs one of the largest and most successful EMR vendors. Epic celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2009 with an impressive client roster, including Kaiser Permanente, the Cleveland Clinic, Geisinger Health System, New York University, Allinia Hospitals and Clinics, Sutter Health and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.