Leadership Principles

Building Amazon’s Customer Service Organization | Colleen Byrum & Jane Slade

Dave Schappell · May 5, 2021 · 3 Comments

Today, in the Invent Like An Owner Podcast, Dave speaks with Colleen Byrum and Jane Slade, who both joined in 1996 (when Jane joined Amazon, they only had 3 Customer Service people!). The discussion surrounds how the Customer Service team wasn't just the people in the Customer Service department, but everyone who joined the company. In the early days, almost all employees got trained in Customer Service support, even engineers and Senior Vice Presidents! Colleen Byrum was the former director …

How We Built Amazon | Kim Rachmeler

Dave Schappell · April 14, 2021 · Leave a Comment

In our first ever episode, Dave speaks with Kim Rachmeler, former VP Worldwide Discovery and member of the S-Team at Amazon.com, Inc. She’s a skilled engineer and web developer whose efforts helped build and develop Amazon literally from the ground up. She shares the challenges of working with a small team of engineers when tech engineers were scarce and some of the iconic steps the company has taken to cope with consistent monthly growth. Episode Resources: Visit Upaya Social …

Behavioral Interviewing Tips

Dave Schappell · April 1, 2021 · Leave a Comment

What is behavioral interviewing? Amazon is not unique in their utilization of behavioral interviewing, but I think it's the most effective way to evaluate prospects during the hiring process. So if you're pursuing employment at Amazon, or any other employer that embraces behavioral interviewing practices, it's worth your time to hone your behavioral interviewing skills. So, what is behavioral interviewing? It is based on the premise that people are most likely to exhibit behavioral traits …

Amazon Operates by its Leadership Principles

Dave Schappell · April 1, 2021 · Leave a Comment

If you haven't heard about Amazon's Leadership Principles before, go read about them on the Amazon.com job site. While many companies have a mission statement and claim to live by it, Amazon reinforces its Leadership Principles from the first review of a job candidate's resume, to evaluation of new product expansion opportunities and, of course, to annual performance reviews. They truly permeate every aspect of daily life at Amazon, and I believe that their application is one of the key …