I have spent 1000+ hours in meetings with Jeff Bezos. His process of inquiry and review challenged and improved my thinking more than anyone I have worked with. Here is how I prepared for meetings with him:
1) The famous narrative memo
Many people know that Amazon meetings are conducted using a structured, six-page narrative memo. However, few people understand what is required to write one.
It isn’t something you can throw together the night before. The first draft is rarely strong enough, and preparation must begin at least a week in advance to allow for revisions.
Once in the meeting, Jeff will spend 15-20 minutes carefully reading the document, making notes, and highlighting items to question. If your memo is thorough, he will cross out most questions as they are answered later in the document.
After the read-through, what follows is 40 minutes of in-depth questions and discussion. No detail is too small to escape his attention, and no problem too complex to dissect.
Prepare yourself by anticipating his questions/concerns and addressing them in the document.
2) Be prepared to say, “I don’t know.”
“I don’t know” is a sufficient answer, as long as it is followed by “Here is when and how I will get the answer.”
It is better to acknowledge that you don’t have the answer and follow up later than to wing it or be vague.
3) Metrics must be accurate and thoughtful
Don’t present numbers based on bad data or without a deep understanding of the data sources and how metrics are calculated. Jeff takes the concept of inquiry to its utmost — he assumes that every number and statement is false until his inquiry process yields sufficient evidence.
Your meeting will derail if you don’t know the details.
4) Diagnose Root Causes
The objective of meetings is a decision. Good decisions start with an understanding of the current problems and opportunities. Many leaders confuse simply providing data with diagnosing the root cause of issues.
Data and metrics are tools used to get to the root causes. You can’t fix a problem or win an opportunity without an accurate diagnosis. Jeff expects you to distill data down to root causes. You won’t get to a decision with Jeff until you are aligned on the problem you are trying to solve.
5) Give objective options.
Jeff expects a structured evaluation of multiple alternative solutions, with an objective assessment of the pros and cons of each.
It is not sufficient to say, “This is our plan.”
Effective narratives describe multiple options, highlighting the one the team recommends and why.
6) Assumptions will be challenged.
“What makes you so sure about that?” is a frequent question. Every claim must be backed by verifiable data or logical reasoning.
7) Highlight problems, not just successes.
Intellectual honesty is valued over good news. Problems should be addressed proactively with clearly recommended solutions, not ignored or obscured.
Continued in the first comment.
