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By James Duncan Davidson from Portland, USA (Etech05: Je) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia
Commons

Amazon & Leadership: The 14 Leadership

Principles (Part 1)
Published on November 11, 2014

Will Trevor MA| BSc Econ | Chartered Marketer Follow

176 11 15
Faculty Program Director at Excelsior College

It'salittleknownfactthatAmazonhas14LeadershipPrinciplesthataremeantasa
guideto'Amazonians',astheyarecalleddefinedasanyonefromanindividual
contributor,allthewayuptothemanagerofalargeteam.IfyouwantajobatAmazon,
thentakingalookattheseprinciplesmightbeagoodplacetostart,buttheyalsotellus
somethingquiteinterestingaboutbothAmazonandthenatureofleadershipwithinthis
influentialorganization.

Ihavelistedthembelow,withsomefurtherinterpretationforeachprinciple.Here'sthe
first7,withtheresttofollowinPart2tomorrow:

#1: Customer Obsession - Leaders start with the customer and

work backwards. They work vigorously to earn and keep customer
trust. Although leaders pay attention to competitors, they obsess
over customers.

Thiscomesfromthetop,soifyouareafterthatjobatAmazonandyouremember
nothingelse,rememberthisfirstprinciple.JeffBezos,AmazonfounderandCEO
(picturedabove),famouslydrovetheproductdevelopmentoftheKindletosatisfywhat

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hefeltwaswhatcustomers'neededanddirectlyagainsttheadviceofdesignersand Sign in Join now

engineers.Bezosisquotedassaying:

Werenotcompetitorobsessed,werecustomer
obsessed.Westartwithwhatthecustomer
needsandweworkbackwards.

#2: Ownership - Leaders are owners. They think long term and
dont sacrifice long-term value for short-term results. They act on
behalf of the entire company, beyond just their own team. They
never say thats not my job."

SacrificinglongtermvalueforshorttermgainiscertainlysomethingthatAmazon
couldneverbeaccusedofdoing.Sinceitwasfoundedin1996,underBezos's
leadershipAmazonhasneverdeclaredaprofit,insteadploughingbillionsbackintothe
business.InAugustofthisyear,onthebackofaquarterlyincreaseinsalesof23%,it
declaredanetlossof$126Mandsuggestedworsewastocomebytheendofthethird
quarterof2014.Amazonshareholdershavebeenverypatient!

#3: Invent and Simplify - Leaders expect and require innovation

and invention from their teams and always find ways to simplify.
They are externally aware, look for new ideas from everywhere,
and are not limited by not invented here." As we do new things,
we accept that we may be misunderstood for long periods of time.

Thisshowsitselfveryclearlyinthethemakeupoftheir'2pizzateams',or2PTs,as
theyarecalled.Bezosbelievesthatmanyteamsaresimplytoobig,whichstifles
innovation.Andsotheyneedtobetherightsizetoensureaccountability,autonomyand
todeliverinnovation,ratherthanbecomemiredinbureaucracyasBezoshassaidabout
theidealteamsize:

Ifyoucan'tfeedateamwithtwopizzas,it'stoo
large

#4: Are Right, A Lot - Leaders are right a lot. They have strong
business judgement and good instincts.

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Amazonexpectsalotfromitsleaders.Thisfourthprinciple,however,echoesthewords Sign in Join now

ofPeterDrucker,thelegendarymanagementguruandthinker,whoinanoftenquoted
phrasesaid:

Managementisdoingthingsrightleadership
isdoingtherightthings.

Bezosfamouslyandpubliclyroastedateamleaderforlackingwhathesawasgood
businessjudgement:

ThisdocumentwasclearlywrittenbytheB
team.CansomeonegetmetheAteam
document?Idontwanttowastemytimewith
theBteamdocument.

#5: Hire and Develop the Best - Leaders raise the performance bar
with every hire and promotion. They recognize exceptional talent,
and willingly move them throughout the organization. Leaders
develop leaders and take seriously their role in coaching others.

WhilstAmazonhasbeenaccusedofsuckingupalloftheavailabletalentinandaround
Seattle,arecentarticleintheNewYorkerprovidedsomecuttinginsightintothe
recruitmentpolicyofAmazon:

ThekeytounderstandingAmazonisthe
hiringprocess,oneformeremployeesaid.
Yourenothiredtodoaparticularjobyoure
hiredtobeanAmazonian.Lotsofmanagers
hadtotaketheMyersBriggspersonalitytests.
Eightypercentofthemcameintwoorthree
similarcategories,andBezosisthesame:
introverted,detailoriented,engineertype
personality.Notmusicians,designers,
salesmen.Thevastmajorityfallwithinthe
samepersonalitytypepeoplewhograduate
atthetopoftheirclassatM.I.T.andhaveno
ideawhattosaytoawomaninabar.

#6: Insist on the Highest Standards - Leaders have relentlessly high

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#6: Insist on the Highest Standards - Leaders have relentlessly high Sign in Join now
standards - many people may think these standards are
unreasonably high. Leaders are continually raising the bar and
driving their teams to deliver high quality products, services and
processes. Leaders ensure that defects do not get sent down the
line and that problems are fixed so they stay fixed.

InDecember2011,BezosdeclaredhispridethatAmazonhadmanagedtoget99.9%of
packagestoitscustomersbeforeChristmas.Whilstthiswasanamazingfeat,healso
wentontostatethatthisstillwasn'tgoodenough,ashedeclaredthat,"Werenot
satisfieduntilits100%."Thusthedemandsonleaders,evenforastandout
performance,arerelentless.

#7: Think Big - Thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Leaders

create and communicate a bold direction that inspires results.
They think dierently and look around corners for ways to serve
customers.

SomethingthathascertainlyinformedtheBezosvisionforthecompanyfromits
earliestdaystothecurrenttime.Amazondidn'tcometodominateitsvariousmarkets
withoutthebreadthofvisionneededtodrivethatgrowth.

LookoutforPart2tomorrow.

WillTrevoristhethePrincipalofYorkSchoolofBusiness,offeringsalesand
marketingqualificationsviaonlinedistancelearning.PleaseclickFollowifyou
wouldliketohearmorefromWillinthefuture.Feelfreetoalsoconnectviahis
Linkedinpage,orviaTwitterandFacebookor
email:will.trevor@yorkschoolofbusiness.com

LearnmoreaboutoursalesandmarketingqualificationsatYorkSchoolof
Business:www.yorkschoolofbusiness.com

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Tagged in: project management,management,leadership

Will Trevor MA| BSc Econ | Chartered Marketer

Faculty Program Director at Excelsior College Follow
111 articles

11 comments Newest

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Changzheng Ma 1mo
Soware Development Engineer at NewSky Security Inc
where is part2?
Like Reply 1 1

Will Trevor MA| BSc Econ | Chartered Marketer 3w

Faculty Program Director at Excelsior College
I actually wrote a single article in which I included all 14: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/so-
you-want-work-amazon-heres-what-need-know-will?trk=prof-post
Like Reply 1

Roberto Silva 2mo

Senior Client Service Specialist at Thomson Reuters
Great article Will! Amazon's leadership principles are a game changer and it inspired me to take care of
my clients, innovate more and think big! I would also recommend this book "The Amazon Way: 14
Leadership Principles Behind the World's Most Disruptive Company".
Like Reply

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