My first 100 days at AWS
It has been 100 days since I’ve joined AWS. The time has gone by in a blur and my aim is to use this post as an opportunity to pause, retrace my steps and share some of my experiences and learning.
The onboarding process at Amazon is super streamlined. From the delivery of work equipment two weeks before your start date, to the detailed Onboarding program which will step you through the culture traits, services and nuances of the organisation. In a post-Covid era, this is an online activity. While many may love the flexibility and comfort of working from home, at times it does feel lonely. Coming from a close-knit team, I missed the regular morning message, banter during the morning standup and working from the office (a few days a week). Upon deeper reflection, I have been extremely fortunate to work with a great bunch of people, not only in my previous role, but throughout my career. I treasure those relationships immensely and work hard to keep in touch with friends I’ve made on project battlegrounds many years ago.
What quickly becomes apparent is the sheer scale of the organisation. From detailed wiki’s to Instant Messaging channels, there are resources and subject matter experts at every turn. The metaphor which springs to mind is entering a Disney theme park. There are rides and attractions everywhere and the map shows 6 other theme parks which you can visit. All rides and attractions are free. However, you only have a finite amount of time available - and you need to choose your path wisely. Conversely, there were also moments of frustration and uncertainty. In my previous roles, I was fortunate to join very close to the inception phase of the project/initiative. I knew how to get things done - from navigating the system to helping new members of the team by knowing the best person to speak to in technical support. During my early days at University I felt the same sense of bewilderment. Trying to remember which pathway lead to which building, and being tossed out by a grumpy professor for arriving late to class. In the last 3 months, it has gotten better and the technique I use, inspired by Hansel and Gretel (actually ASIF HAMZA), is to leave a trail. My approach is to document everything. I use an internal note-taking tool which is similar to Notion or Obsidian. You can also use something as simple as Apple Notes. The entry does not have to be perfect. You are essentially writing a note to yourself.
During the Onboarding process, I initially skirted around the “soft and fluffy“ activities, choosing the more technical ones first. To get more activities completed, I finally started on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) ones. Surprisingly, the DEI principles is one of the areas which stands out most in my Onboarding. Throughout my career, I have always been trying to ”fit in“. The key message that I extracted is that everyone is unique. My background, thought process and contribution is different - but valued. Like snowflakes, no two people are the same. However, we typically go with the flow - because of fear of navigating a less-trodden path, disagreeing with the collective or even being afraid to say ”I don’t know”.
This sentiment is reiterated during the Hiring process. Coming into AWS, I felt that the interview process was intense. From previous interviews I’ve been in and conducted, it was typically a casual chat with a candidate while you read through their CV, included a “problem-solving” scenario and an informal decision-making process thereafter. With a behind-the-scenes view, I can share that the Amazon interview process is far more detailed and actually considers the Candidate as the Customer. There is a significant amount of work done as part of the recruitment process. In addition to the interview with the candidate, there are sessions to prepare, capture notes and discuss collective feedback. This includes up to 7 people and the combined time is more than 12 hours. There is even a defined process to qualify as an interviewer. I feel awful for brow-beating one of the candidates I interviewed years ago to “Sell me Cloud!”. If you do find yourself in an Amazon interview, the best advice I can give you is to be sure to provide a detailed and concrete data point for each of your answers.
I have been incredibly fortunate to have been assigned to a local and an international project. Although my family could not understand why I would sometimes voluntarily brave morning traffic (during loadshedding) to go into the Customer’s office, the direct interaction was invaluable. It not only afforded me the opportunity to make new friends, but I was able to understand the environment and context of the engagement far better. Being in meetings with an international team feels a little surreal at times and I call my daughter over to listen to the foreign accents. What has struck me is that organisations across the world are grappling with the same challenges in their migration to Cloud. This is truly an exciting time to be in technology and I encourage you to grab the opportunity to get into the Cloud game.
Most of all, I am truly grateful for an incredible support structure during this time. My wife and children, who sometimes have to compete with a green terminal screen or training videos for my attention. I consider myself blessed to have awesome friends (some old, some new) and a welcoming, high-performing team who are patiently pointing out landmarks and details of this dynamic new landscape.
Note: I work at Amazon, but this is my own opinion.
