Organizations of all sizes often ask how their companies can innovate like Amazon. Since it’s humble beginnings as the "World's Largest Bookstore," Amazon has not only innovated across e-commerce and other adjacent segments but has also introduced entirely new and unrelated businesses to the organization. Over the years Amazon has gotten very good at taking hard to solve problems and making them easy for the masses to use. This session will look at how Amazon views and leverages technology as a utility to increase the pace of innovation across the organization. About the Event: AWS Transformation Day is designed for enterprise organizations migrating to the cloud to become more responsive, agile and innovative, while staying secure and compliant. Join us for this one-day event and we’ll share our experiences of helping enterprise customers accelerate the pace of migration and adoption of strategic services. Who should attend? This event is recommended for IT and business leaders who are looking to create sustainable benefits and a competitive advantage by using the AWS Cloud. CIOs, CTOs, CISOs, CDOs, CFOs, IT leaders and IT professionals, enterprise developers, business decision makers, and finance executives.

1. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Richard Halkett, WW Lead, Digital Innovation
Wednesday, September 12th, 2018
Amazon’s Culture of Innovation
Enabling Everyone to Innovate

2. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Invention comes in many forms and at
many scales. The most radical and
transformative of inventions are often
those that empower others to unleash
their creativity – to pursue their
dreams
Jeff Bezos
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Amazon.com, Inc.

3. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
1994 m Founded
1995 m Amazon.com
1998 m Added CDs & DVDs
2006 m Amazon Web Services
2007 m Kindle
2011 m Video
2012 m Groceries
2014 m Alexa/Echo
2015 m Bookstores
2017 m Go
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-corporatetimeline

4. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Our mission
to be Earth’s most
customer-centric company

5. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Where innovation begins
we start with the customer
and work backwards

6. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
© 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its affiliates. All rights reserved.

7. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
© 2017, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.

8. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.

9. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.

10. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
How do we organize for innovation?
Mechanisms
Encoded behaviors that facilitate innovative thinking
Architecture
Structure that supports rapid growth and change
Culture
Customer obsession, hire builders, let them build,
support them with a belief system
Organization
Small, empowered teams that own what they create

11. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Working Backwards
is a process
Use it to get clarity, not to document what
you’ve already decided to do.
Customer
Press
Release
FAQ
User
Manual

12. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.

13. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Who is your
customer?
Be specific about their context and needs

14. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Artifacts of the Working Backwards process
Press Release
FAQ
Visuals

15. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
We read,
discuss,
debate
and ask
questions.

16. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.

17. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
How do we organize for innovation?
Mechanisms
Encoded behaviors that facilitate innovative thinking
Architecture
Structure that supports rapid growth and change
Culture
Customer obsession, hire builders, let them build, support them with a
belief system
Organization
Small, empowered teams that own what they create

18. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Self-service platforms
without gatekeepers
“We are creating powerful self-service
platforms that allow thousands of people
to boldly experiment and accomplish
things that would otherwise
be impossible or impractical.”

19. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
HYBRID
ARCHITECTURE
Data Backups
Integrated
App
Deployments
Direct
Connect
Identity
Federation
Integrated
Resource
Management
Integrated
Networking
MARKETPLACE
Business
Apps
Databases
DevOps
Tools
NetworkingSecurity Storage
Business
Intelligence
ENTERPRISE
APPS
Virtual
Desktops
Sharing &
Collaboration
Corporate
Email
Backup
IoT
Rules
Engine
Device
Shadows
Device
SDKs
Registry
Device
Gateway
DEVELOPMENT & OPERATIONSMOBILE SERVICESAPP SERVICESANALYTICS
Data
Warehousing
Hadoop
/Spark
Streaming Data
Collection
Machine
Learning
Elastic
Search
Queuing &
Notifications
Workflow
Search
Email
Transcoding
One-click App
Deployment
Identity
Sync
Mobile App
Testing
Push
Notifications
DevOps Resource
Management
Application Lifecycle
Management
Containers
Triggers
Resource
Templates
API
Gateway
Streaming Data
Analysis
Business
Intelligence
Mobile
Analytics
Single Integrated
Console
TECHNICAL & BUSINESS SUPPORT
Support
Professional
Services
Account
Management
Partner
Ecosystem
Solutions
Architects
Training &
Certification
Security &
Billing Reports
GAMING
3D Game
Engine
Character
Designer
Multiplayer
Service
Twitch
Integration
Cloud
Integration
Regions
Availability
Zones
Points of
Presence
INFRASTRUCTURE
CORE SERVICES
Compute
VMs, Auto-scaling, Load Balancing,
Containers, Cloud functions
Storage
Object, Blocks, File,
Archivals, Import/Export
Databases
Relational, NoSQL,
Caching, Migration
CDN Networking
VPC, DX, DNS
Access Control
Identity
Management
Key
Management &
Storage
Monitoring
& Logs
SECURITY & COMPLIANCE
Resource &
Usage Auditing
Configuration
Compliance
Web application
firewall
Assessment and
reporting

20. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
A structure that
allowed for
1 change/second…

21. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
How do we organize for innovation?
Mechanisms
Encoded behaviors that facilitate innovative thinking
Architecture
Structure that supports rapid growth and change
Culture
Customer obsession, hire builders, let them build, support them with a
belief system
Organization
Small, empowered teams that own what they create

22. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Every one of us is a
leader on our
mission

23. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Is it a one-way or
a two-way door?

24. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.

25. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
66
Price Reductions (since ‘06)
1,430
New Services and Features
introduced in FY 17
Millions of
Monthly Active Customers

26. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Learn from failures…

27. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
How do we organize for innovation?
Mechanisms
Encoded behaviors that facilitate innovative thinking
Architecture
Structure that supports rapid growth and change
Culture
Customer obsession, hire builders, let them build, support them with a
belief system
Organization
Small, empowered teams that own what they create

28. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Amazon hires
builders and lets
them build

29. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Two-Pizza teams are
fast and agile, foster
ownership and
autonomy
Small,
decentralized
teams are
nimble
Own and run
what you
build

30. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Experiment early &
frequently

31. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Enabling everyone to innovate
Mechanisms
Encoded behaviors that facilitate innovative thinking
Architecture
Structure that supports rapid growth and change
Culture
Customer obsession, hire builders, let them build,
support them with a belief system
Organization
Small, empowered teams that own what they create

32. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
f(innovation) = (org * arch)
(mechanisms * culture)

33. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Thank you!
33

34. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
© 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
Leadership principles
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.
Ownership
Leaders are owners. They think long term and don’t
sacrifice long-term value for short-term results. They act
on behalf of the entire company, beyond just their own
team. They never say “that’s not my job”.
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.
Are Right, a Lot
Leaders are right a lot. They have strong judgment and
good instincts. They seek diverse perspectives and work to
disconfirm their beliefs.
Learn and Be Curious
Leaders are never done learning and always seek to
improve themselves. They are curious about new
possibilities and act to explore them.
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. We
work on behalf of our people to invent mechanisms for
development like Career Choice.
Insist on the Highest Standards
Leaders have relentlessly high 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.
Think Big
Thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Leaders create
and communicate a bold direction that inspires results.
They think differently and look around corners for ways to
serve customers.
Bias for Action
Speed matters in business. Many decisions and actions are
reversible and do not need extensive study. We value
calculated risk taking.
Frugality
Accomplish more with less. Constraints breed
resourcefulness, self-sufficiency and invention. There are
no extra points for growing headcount, budget size or
fixed expense.
Earn Trust
Leaders listen attentively, speak candidly, and treat others
respectfully. They are vocally self-critical, even when doing
so is awkward or embarrassing. Leaders do not believe
their or their team’s body odor smells of perfume. They
benchmark themselves and their teams against the best.
Dive Deep
Leaders operate at all levels, stay connected to the details,
audit frequently, and are skeptical when metrics and
anecdote differ. No task is beneath them.
Have Backbone; Disagree and Commit
Leaders are obligated to respectfully challenge decisions
when they disagree, even when doing so is uncomfortable
or exhausting. Leaders have conviction and are tenacious.
They do not compromise for the sake of social cohesion.
Once a decision is determined, they commit wholly.
Deliver Results
Leaders focus on the key inputs for their business and
deliver them with the right quality and in a timely
fashion. Despite setbacks, they rise to the occasion and
never settle.

35. © 2018, Amazon Web Services, Inc. or its Affiliates. All rights reserved.
Most companies write the software,
they get it all working, and then they
throw it over the wall to the
marketing department, saying ‘here is
what we built, go write the press
release.’ That process is the one
that’s actually backwards.”
Jeff Bezos
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Amazon.com, Inc.