EP 6 – Start with the Problem, Not the Methodology with Prem Krishna

In this episode, Sam Lewis speaks with Prem Krishna, Global BPM Transformation Leader at IKEA. Prem’s career has taken him from software development and management consulting in India, through operational excellence and supply chain leadership roles at Johnson & Johnson, to leading business process transformation in one of the world’s most recognised brands. 

What makes Prem’s perspective particularly interesting is that he does not see himself primarily as a process professional. He sees himself as a problem solver. Throughout his career, he has worked across industries including manufacturing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, supply chain and retail, applying the same fundamental principle: understand the problem before choosing the solution. 

This is a practical and thought-provoking conversation about process, governance, continuous improvement and why organisations often focus on the wrong things when trying to solve business challenges. 

They discuss: 

  • Why Prem sees himself as a problem solver rather than a process professional, and how that mindset has helped him work across industries from manufacturing and pharmaceuticals to retail and supply chain 
  • The danger of starting with methodologies such as Lean Six Sigma, Agile, process mining or AI before fully understanding the problem you are trying to solve 
  • Why organisations often blame process when the real issues are governance, ownership, decision-making and unclear responsibilities 
  • The lessons he learned improving manufacturing operations, and how data, observation and systems thinking help uncover what is really happening on the shop floor 
  • The difference between improving physical production processes and digital workflows, and why process mining has become such a powerful tool for understanding how work actually gets done 
  • How he helped build a five-year cost reduction strategy at Johnson & Johnson, and why winning stakeholder support one conversation at a time is often the key to successful transformation 
  • How AI is changing the way organisations operate, why it should be treated as a tool rather than a strategy, and what happens when you apply AI to a process that is already chaotic 

 

If you work in process management, transformation, operational excellence or enterprise change, this episode offers a refreshingly pragmatic perspective on how to solve problems, improve performance and create lasting results. 

Host: Sam Lewis, Director at bpmd 

Guest: Prem Krishna, Global BPM Transformation Leader at IKEA