Ethan Evans' Career Path: Startup Manager to Amazon VP

Ethan Evans is a retired Amazon VP. He shared his career journey starting out during the dot-com boom of the 1990s, quickly ascending as a manager at a string of startups.

Early Career and Management Path:

• Ethan started in management early, taking on a TPM role for a small project due to the team's need.
• He was drawn to leadership because the project lacked organization, focus, and communication.
• Ethan was supported by managers and encouraged to continue in the role. He progressed through several startups, growing in each one and reaching VP level by the third.

Joining Amazon:

• Ethan was a "fake" startup VP before going getting downleveled as a manager at Amazon, and it took years for him to return to a true VP role, managing a team of 800 people.
• The startup he was at was failing, and Amazon offered more compensation despite being giving a worse title.
• He initially managed a team of six at Amazon, which eventually grew to 800.

Ethan credits his rapid ascent to:

• Seeing problems and proactively solving them.
• Taking initiative and asking for more responsibility.
• Curiosity and motivation to understand the bigger picture.

More to explore:

• [Taro Top 10] Software Engineer To Engineering Manager (IC -> M Track)
• What's the difference between Big Tech and startups in terms of learning and growth?
• How much am I hurting my career by staying at a startup? (Pressure to work for big tech)