Kannan Krishnan
Senior Manager, Supplier Quality
MD&D, JOHNSON & JOHNSON
Describe a supplier quality initiative you will be focusing on in 2014.
Managing Supplier Quality through pro-active quality initiatives and mitigating risks to the organization by conducting effective assessments will continue to remain my focus for 2014. We are also focused on building efficiencies in to the process such as not assessing the same supplier by multiple J&J organizations.
How do you see supplier quality within the diagnostic industry evolving over the next 5 years?
Organizations have deployed many quality and improvement initiatives within their own manufacturing organizations especially in the past few years. This was especially evident as the economy went through a bad patch and organization focused heavily on the cost of quality elements. I expect these initiatives to be expanded in to the supplier base as well by these organizations.
What are you most looking forward to regarding the Diagnostic Supplier Quality Assurance Conference?
I am looking forward to picking new ideas or better ways of doing things in the area of Supplier Quality. Because we are from a regulated industry, sometimes our processes morph and end up being more complicated than necessary. A conference like this provides an avenue to gather new ideas.
What has been your greatest achievement within your current role?
Deploying a newer approach to aspects of the Supplier Auditing program and at the same time harmonizing the program within the nine Medical Device operating companies within Johnson and Johnson has been challenging as well as rewarding.
