First level managers are not valued much. - Software Development Manager Amazon Employee Review

1.0
Jun 30, 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good salary. Other than that I dont see much of pros in the company.

Cons

Amazon is big on its culture. It has set of Leadership principles that every employee is asked to follow and measured against during performance review. Amazon stresses on taking data driven decisions. Engineers are given more value than their Managers, because companies strength is its engineers. Performance is based on 360 degrees feedback where engineers give skip level feedback about their managers. Although above three principles are great, the problem comes in applying these leadership principles and priorities in Indian culture where engineers are not matured, professional or honest compared to US. Here are the few issues that I have observed. 1. Engineers are mostly fresh out of college, don't have any maturity. But they are given power to judge whether their manager is good or not. 2. There is a lot of bias and favoritism. Agarwals, Guptas, people from Delihi dominate the company. 3. Yearly reviews are a circus. They make their decision first and then use data to either to ding you or promote you. They make the decision based on other reasons and then make up the data to support it. 4. Quality of work is not great either. Everything is automated. Most of the juicy work is done in Seattle. Your work mostly involves using the tools and frameworks developed in Seattle. Work involves mostly modifying UI widgets and some minor changes in existing services. Nothing to be really proud of. 5. Lots of overhead for managers. You need to spend most of your time "pampering' engineers. 6. If you rate some one in your team as a low performer, team can gang up against you and give you bad rating in 360 review.

Explore other reviews about Amazon

5.0
Jan 23, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Working as a Data Center Engineering Operations (DCEO) technician at AWS has been an incredibly fulfilling experience. Every day, I know that my work directly supports the infrastructure that powers services used by millions of customers worldwide—from Netflix streaming to NASA processing Mars rover images. What makes this role special is the sense of ownership and responsibility. DCEO technicians are truly the heartbeat of the data center, maintaining the critical power, cooling, and life safety systems that keep AWS running at 99.999% uptime. The mission is clear: be stealthy in action and swift in recovery, solving problems before they impact customers. The technical challenges keep the work engaging. Whether I'm monitoring building management systems, responding to alarms, managing preventative maintenance programs, or coordinating with vendors, there's always something new to learn. The role demands both hands-on technical skills and critical thinking, which makes every shift dynamic and rewarding. AWS invests heavily in training and development. The comprehensive onboarding process, detailed standard operating procedures, and access to subject matter experts across Field Engineering and other support teams ensure you're never alone in solving complex problems. The emphasis on safety is genuine—leadership truly prioritizes that everyone goes home in the same condition they arrived. Working alongside dedicated teams like DCO, Infrastructure Delivery, and Logistics creates a collaborative environment where everyone understands how their role contributes to the bigger picture. The 24/7 nature of the work means building strong relationships with your shift team, and there's real camaraderie in knowing you're all working toward the same critical mission. For anyone who enjoys hands-on technical work, values operational excellence, and wants to be part of maintaining world-class infrastructure at global scale, DCEO at AWS offers a challenging and meaningful career path.

Cons

Time constraints, and demands can be overwhelming.

5.0
Jan 10, 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Really smart people, a lot of opportunity for growth, always encouraged to be innovative, think big, and create something new. Competitive salary and benefits with other major tech companies. 100% self motivating work environment. No dress code and 4 legged friends are welcome.

Cons

You have to be self motivated. NO ONE will hold your hand and tell you that you're doing a great job. If you need constant affirmations from management, this company isn't for you.

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