Guided by the knowledge that not everything needs change and that change needs cohesion, Ashwin Krishman makes the most of working with teams.
What’s your story?
I’m the kind of leader who steps into complexity, brings clarity, and turns strategy into something people can actually execute. My story spans 23 years across banking, telecom, and transformation, where I’ve built new businesses, scaled teams, and helped organisations move faster without losing their footing.
I grew up in India, moved to Switzerland in 2004, and learned early that strong leadership is about discipline, empathy and ambition. I worked at the intersection of business, technology, and people — growing Cognizant Switzerland, building Cognizant’s European digital banking practice, Intrapreneurship & Innovation, and helping Orange Business accelerate their digital transformation
What excites you most about your industry?
The raw energy of digital transformation fires me up — watching AI, cloud, and agile teams shatter old limits and birth game-changing innovations. The human spark is everything and often overlooked in the rush towards technology. By understanding technology and working with teams, I like to challenge established norms through first principles thinking, igniting teams to rethink what’s possible.
What gets my blood pumping? That electric moment when strategy slams into execution, silos explode, and businesses don’t just survive — they conquer. In this arena, the future isn’t knocking; we’re forging it, faster and bolder every damn day.
What drives you in your career to push beyond what other people consider normal?
A fire to create lasting impact — turning “impossible” into inevitable. I push limits because I’ve seen what happens when teams unite around bold visions.Normal is comfortable; I thrive on the edge, questioning first principles, bridging tech and people to build futures others can’t yet see. It’s not about glory — it’s the rush of watching organisations evolve, innovate, and win big by just tapping into their own potential.
Converting an organization’s potential energy into kinetic energy that generates value for society.
What have been the most useful skills you have learnt and applied in your journey?
Technology is a powerhouse, but it takes terrific teams to forge tangible, real, positive impact. Key? Grasp why teams, systems, processes, or companies tick a certain way before tweaking — not everything screams for change.
I’ve mastered first principles to gut problems bare, agile leadership to fire up diverse squads in the trenches, and laser customer focus to nail tech to game-changing wins.
Whether it was building Openbank’s cloud-native Digital Wealth Management platform or transforming the ways of working at Orange- breaking silos, helping teams coinnovate.
Chaos? It may look like that, but the resulting outcome is unstoppable breakthroughs—pure Magic.
What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?
There are 2:
1. Be like water: agile, adaptable, inclusive, flowing around obstacles yet powerfully persistent.
2. We are not paid to do the easy job: celebrate difficulties, obstacles, and always focus on the value being created for your team, your customer and society
These have shaped my career, ensuring that I always focus on delivering value and supporting my team members.
Who inspires you?
My mom, for her selfless care as a paediatrician — teaching empathy amid chaos.
Satya Nadella, for transforming Microsoft through bold empathy and cloud mastery.
Shankar Ehsaan Loy, who experimented and pushed the boundaries of music from classical, jazz, rock and rap.
And Hans Rosling from Factfulness, for data-driven optimism that cuts through noise. They all show: lead with heart, facts, and rhythm to create lasting waves.
What have you learnt recently that blew you away?
One AI-generated video (~15 seconds) is estimated to be roughly equivalent to an hour-long Zoom call.
The proliferation of AI content is a double-edged sword, and its rapid adoption without a focus on positive outcomes and the betterment of society will have a serious impact on humanity.
If you had your time again, what would you do differently?
I was thrown into leadership positions quite early in my career ( managing a team of over 160 people across continents before turning 30).
I learned the hard way the importance of diversity, of adjusting to a team rhythm and that not everyone will be at the same speed, but when in sync and harmony can do wonders.
I wish I had learned that before (but probably needed that experience to learn it properly).
Secondly, pick the areas I choose to transform. Not everything needs to be or should be changed. Driving disruptive innovation requires patience, persistence, but also some providence.
How do you unwind?
Cooking fires up all five senses — chopping, simmering, sharing a feast grounds me after intense days.
Strumming the guitar or singing lets me harmonise chaos, find rhythm.
Dabbling in poetry and prose help reflect, centre my thoughts.
Simple joys: family laughs, a solid playlist, trail walks in Switzerland. Recharge, then back to building the future.
What is a major mindset change, belief shift or ‘ah ha’ moment that you’ve experienced in relation to your career?
Realised leadership isn’t about being the smartest — it’s creating space for the team to shine. Early in my career, I chased solo heroics; working with larger teams, I saw psychological safety explode innovation and business value.
‘Aha’: vulnerability breeds velocity. Now, I build cultures where ideas flow free, turning good into unstoppable. Game-changer.
Everyone in business should read this book:
Factfulness by Hans Rosling. It smashes instinct-driven gloom with data-proven progress, sharpening your lens on opportunities amid noise. In transformation, it’s gold: ditch drama, chase facts for smarter strategies.
Shameless plug for your business or career:
I’m your bridge to digital dominance — turning tech chaos into commercial rocket fuel. Unlock your organization’s innovation potential and help you thrive by becoming a disruptor rather than being disrupted.
I am also running a platform https://1-percent-better.com/ to help companies invest in innovation better.
What makes an innovation succeed: Team, Technology, Timing.
Our platform uses psychometric assessments to analyse the Team, over 18 AI agents to research and check the technology and timing claims and allows the investor’s intuition to also be factored.
Next time you invest, use us to convert gut feel to great deals.
How can people connect with you?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashwin-krishnan/
Social Media Links?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashwin-krishnan/
This interview is part of the CallumConnects series.