In over two decades of its existence, Amazon has changed the business landscape. After its founding, many investors made fun of the company for reinvesting its profits – or even running at a loss – so that it could position itself better in the future workplace. Once the home of just bookselling, it has become a powerhouse of logistics, web development, eBooks, and digital devices. The authors, former senior leaders at the company, team together to tell that story.
I found the first half of the book entrancing as they gave us an insider’s look into “Amazonian” values at work. The company consistently chose the long game over the short game – an unusual trait in American business. Though they almost never won on day one, week one, quarter one, or even year one, they eventually established dominance in a domain against the biggest of hitters of Big Tech. Certainly, such an approach is as enlightening as it is inspiring.
Therefore, I garnered insight by seeing how they applied their values to real business problems. Phrases like “customer obsession” became real. However, the second half of the book tended to drone on in success stories instead of insights. Perhaps it was me being distracted, but the story of Amazon Web Services’ launch did not provide nearly as much insight as the earlier stories did. It seemed more hemming and hawing about how Amazon dominating yet another market sector instead of providing strategic insight that could be reapplied.
Nonetheless, for those of us in companies of any size, inspiring wisdom of how to achieve market dominance is always welcomed. It’s interesting how much determination and perseverance play a central role in this story. In my field of academic research, those factors are still dominant in my team’s efforts, too. Many companies simply seek to borrow research’s long efforts, but the authors demonstrate how companies, with the right leadership, can achieve such innovation themselves, too. The authors demonstrate how we can all be “Amazonian” in our own ways, and I think the world’s business climate could be better for it.
Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon
By Colin Bryar & Bill Carr
Narrated by Colin Bryar, Bill Carr & Robert Petkoff
Text copyright (c) 2021
St. Martin’s Press
Audio copyright (c) 2021
Macmillan Audio
ASIN B088MFRK1H
Length: 10:41
Genre: Business, Management
www.amazon.com