My Learnings from 5 years at Amazon

In Dec-24, I completed 5 years at Amazon India. And so, it called for some reflection. A major milestone, it's been the longest I've worked in the same place. The journey, like most other's, was filled with professional highs and lows but had tons of learning. It's also coincided with major personal milestones, moving cities to Bangalore which we now call home, surviving the pandemic and giving birth to my amazing daughter. It's been a great lesson for me in working in a large company, managing work and life, and building great friendships at work.

Some of my key takeaways:

1. Small things matter.

While working in Amazon Fresh, my manager pushed me to drive small improvements to help improve margins. Very unglamourously, I monitored how much of the vendor's truck capacity was being utilised, how were the crates stacked with products, raw material wastage when packing in larger plastic bags than needed, etc. But these have created lasting lessons to continously look for opportunities to improve.

2. Just do it.

In a large company like Amazon, there will always be more naysayers and a tendency for analysis paralysis But persistence and finding a few partners that are willing to try experiments is key. Whether it was launching meal kits in Amazon Fresh or driving new initiatives for selection growth, while it may get frustrating fighting the battle, in hindsight I really I enjoyed hustling my way to experimentation. Some things worked, some didn't. But I learnt a ton, either way. And, sometimes just said Oops!

3. Investing in Relationships > Everything Else.

It's the classic lesson from negotiations. As long as the other party trusts that you're not in it to throw them under the bus, getting things done is so much easier. And, sometimes colleagues go even beyond their job to just help out. Everyone likes feeling valued.

4. The rat race is stupid.

In India, we're always looking for that next promotion and benchmarking against peers. In hindsight, things work out in a long 20-30 year long career. When I had my daughter and struggled managing work and home, I took on a role that was less demanding and would mean delayed promotion to the next level. Honestly, that was the best decision I've made. I wouldn't trade being a mom for anything in the world. After a hard day at work, when my daughter gives me a big hug at home, everything becomes less stressful.

5. Having good mentorship is so underrated.

In my first year at Amazon, I struggled with culture and ways of working. But in my assigned mentor, who'd then been with Amazon for more than 5 years, I found a great sounding board who was always logical, approachable and empathetic. Through the five years, I've changed teams, roles, and so on. But he's been the one constant that I can always go to for unbiased feedback and advice.

There are so many people that I'm grateful to learn from at Amazon, you know who you are. Thanks for everything.