Amazon

I work as a software development manager for Amazon in Seattle. What I like most about working at Amazon is the ability to make a large-scale impact on the way the world buys stuff. And I get to do that of my own accord.

Autonomy, independent thinking, and ownership are encouraged here better than at any other place that I know of. Amazon is a great place for builders, and if you enjoy building things (robots at home, software at work, the works...) – then you will love working here.

As you will hear many Amazonians say, "there is scale, and then there is Amazon scale." I do not know of any other place that provides the cusp of physical scale and computing scale that Amazon provides. Physically moving goods across the world based on someone clicking a "buy now" button on the website – and doing it a very large number of times every day – brings with it some very interesting (including several unsolved) problems. It is a lot of fun to work on such problems.

Amazon is also a place that rewards diversity of thinking and approach. That has brought together a whole bunch of very interesting and smart people. I learn a lot every day that I show up at work. Amazon also has one of the most flexible internal move policies – so it is super easy to find something within the company that you are interested in working on and start working on it!

It is a very fast-paced environment where something is happening all the time. Never a dull moment. That includes spirited whiteboard discussions, quick team stand-ups, and some noisy Friday evenings :)

The speed at which Amazon is growing resonates across the company.

This has had some downsides in terms of "big company" features showing up at work. Sometimes there is process that builders may not enjoy as much. There is a lot of active push-back against unnecessary process, and the good part is that at Amazon, it does change things. But still, it feels like a "big company" sometimes.

Another aspect of having a fast-moving builder culture with a lot of smart people is that it can be overwhelming at times. Sometimes I have felt that things are moving too fast, and I have to play catch-up.

Please do not give in to the pressures of the stock market or analysts. Amazon's strength is to think, invest, and build with a long-term perspective. Not many people get it, and that is okay. Most of us work here for that exact reason, and we know that we are making big impacts. So please do not start thinking too much about profitability and keep working towards the long term.