How executives should structure a recurring calendar
How executives spend their time is an underrated concept. People talk about time management, but they think about it on a day-to-day or even week-to-week basis when they should consider it comprehensively. As an executive at Amazon, I learned how to set my schedule of recurring and one-off meetings on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, and […]
by Bill Carr
Ten meeting behaviors of great executives at Amazon
I spent 15 years at Amazon, including countless hours in meetings with some of the most talented executives on the planet, like Jeff Bezos, Andy Jassy, Jeff Wilke, Steve Kessel, and more. Here are 10 behaviors that great execs display in meetings. 1. They study, read, and absorb the material presented in the meeting with […]
by Bill Carr
Why retail is detail: lessons in operational rigor at Amazon
The phrase “Retail is detail” is often attributed to James McGinnis, a former Macy’s executive. It highlights how small factors can significantly influence customer experience and retail success, emphasizing the importance of attention to detail in retail management. In 1999, shortly after I joined Amazon, we had a guest speaker who was a seasoned retail […]
by Bill Carr
Develop deep business insight with metric rich WBRs
One essential skill for executives is the ability to process complex information at speed. This skill can be developed. Amazon executives become exceptional at interpreting large, complex datasets and narratives through two core mechanisms: a) The Weekly Business Review (WBR), which covers 200–300 metrics in a single meeting b) The six-page narratives that begin many […]
by Bill Carr
Leading a team event in Portugal this May: what to expect
Happy to share that Colin and I will be leading this event in Portugal this May. Should be a great experience for all involved.
by Bill Carr
How Amazon instruments data collection for business reviews
Amazon’s main control processes are S-Team Goal Reviews, QBRs, MBRs, and WBRs. But before any of these reviews can take place, the data to be reviewed must be properly collected. Here is how Amazon instruments this data collection: First, imagine you run a small, single-person business. You do not need lots of instrumentation to understand […]
by Bill Carr
How Amazon sets clear, actionable goals with no hierarchy
Amazon does not use OKRs or KPIs. Instead, Amazon uses a simple, flat list of goals with no hierarchy. Each goal has a single owner and objective pass/fail criteria. Here is how this approach works so well for Amazon: Amazon’s goal-setting process is simple. Every year, through the OP-1 planning cycle, teams generate a list […]
by Bill Carr
How Amazon executives operate three years in the future
Jeff Bezos gave a speech for the Economic Club of Washington in 2018 where he spoke about how he and Amazon executives operate: “All of our senior executives operate the same way I do. They work in the future, they live in the future. None of the people who report to me should really be […]
by Bill Carr
How Amazon’s PR/FAQ process defines what not to build
To quote the famous economist Michael Porter, “The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.” This idea was echoed by Steve Jobs, who famously said, “Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.” At Amazon, the majority of new ideas we had never became products. We would work […]
by Bill Carr
Seven tips for writing effective Amazon-style business narratives
My co-author, Colin Bryar, and I wrote, read, and reviewed thousands of business narrative documents during our combined 27 years at Amazon. Based on our experience, here are tips to follow and common pitfalls to avoid. 1. Write for a generalist executive audience. Picture your reader as intelligent but unfamiliar with the specifics of your […]
by Bill Carr