Denise Brooks-Williams

Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer

Denise Brooks-Williams was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Henry Ford Health on Oct. 1, 2024. In this role, Denise oversees all hospital and service operations for the 13-hospital health system comprising more than 550 sites of care, 50,000 team members and annual revenues of $12 billion. Reporting to her are the regional and hospital leadership teams, ambulatory operations, supply chain, and facility and support services, including security.

Prior to her current role, Denise was Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Care Delivery System Operations at Henry Ford Health. In her capacity, she served a growing customer base across Michigan. Market Operations generated over $8 billion in revenue, managed over 430,000 ER visits, and performed nearly 75,000 surgical procedures. In addition to stewardship of market strategy and hospital operations, she provided system-wide leadership over other key and significant areas, including ambulatory operations, surgical services, service lines, and emergency departments to drive growth, integration, and efficiency across the care delivery system while overseeing just over 21,000 team members, 5 hospitals and 250 care sites.

Denise also previously served as Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Henry Ford Health’s North Market. In these roles, she was responsible for driving revenue, growth, and overall market performance by partnering with both hospital executives, as well as other clinical and non-clinical leaders, to identify opportunities for service expansion and consumer experience improvements across sites.

Beyond her professional responsibilities, Denise is deeply committed to community service and equity in healthcare. She serves on the boards of Authority Health( chair) , Detroit Institute of Arts, Teach for America, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, among others. Denise’s leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly on Michigan’s Governor’s Task Force on Racial Disparities, significantly reduced mortality rates among African Americans. Her dedication to advancing healthcare and her community exemplifies her impact and influence.

Denise is a native of Detroit, Michigan. She holds bachelor’s and master's degrees in health services administration from the University of Michigan and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. She is married to Jeffrey and has two adult daughters: Jenise and Jasmine.