"Customer Obsession" Leadership Principle Explained by Amazon CEO Andy Jassy

Summary

The speaker discusses Amazon's core value of customer obsession, emphasizing that everything at the company starts with the customer. From the early decision to include customer reviews despite opposition, to the proactive approach taken during the pandemic, Amazon’s focus is always on delivering the best experience for customers. The speaker also highlights the importance of being aware of competitors and economics, but ultimately, the priority is always the customer’s needs. This mindset drives Amazon’s innovation, product development, and long-term success.

Takeaways

• 😀 Customer obsession is a core principle at Amazon, where everything starts with the customer and works backward from there.
• 😀 Amazon's focus on customer trust and satisfaction is central to its culture and has been evident since its early days.
• 😀 Unlike many companies, Amazon consistently walks the talk when it comes to doing right by customers, which is why it's successful.
• 😀 One early example of Amazon's customer obsession was the introduction of customer reviews for books, despite resistance from publishers.
• 😀 During the pandemic, Amazon proactively helped its cloud computing customers reduce costs to ensure long-term success.
• 😀 Amazon's product development process includes creating detailed working-backwards documents, including a press release and FAQ, to ensure products meet customer needs.
• 😀 Amazon believes in addressing sustainability and economics, but never at the expense of long-term customer satisfaction.
• 😀 Competitors' actions are always monitored, but Amazon's focus remains on improving the customer experience, regardless of what competitors do.
• 😀 If a competitor creates something customers love, Amazon should take inspiration from it and continuously improve its own offerings.
• 😀 Every employee at Amazon has the freedom and responsibility to look at customer needs and seek continuous improvements.

Q & A

What is the central focus of Amazon's leadership principle of Customer Obsession?

Amazon's leadership principle of Customer Obsession is centered around putting the customer first and working backwards from their needs. It emphasizes earning and keeping customer trust while constantly improving the customer experience.

Why did Amazon choose to implement customer reviews for books despite initial resistance from publishers?

Amazon chose to implement customer reviews for books because they believed honest reviews would help customers make better decisions when purchasing products, thus providing greater value to the customer.

How did Amazon respond to the challenges posed by the pandemic in relation to its customers?

During the pandemic, Amazon took a customer-first approach by proactively working with their cloud computing customers to help optimize their costs, allowing businesses to save money and focus on long-term growth rather than extracting more money from them.

What process does Amazon follow in product development to ensure customer satisfaction?

Amazon follows a 'working backwards' process, starting with a press release and frequently asked questions document to clarify the customer problem, key features, and potential disappointments before writing any code. This ensures the product will genuinely matter to customers.

What is the role of economics and sustainability in Amazon's customer obsession approach?

While Amazon prioritizes customer obsession, they also recognize the importance of sustainability and economic feasibility in the long term. If a customer-focused idea isn't sustainable or economically viable, it may not be beneficial to customers in the long run.

How does Amazon balance customer obsession with competition?

Amazon remains aware of competitors and is inspired by their successful features, but it focuses primarily on improving its own customer experience. Being customer-obsessed means learning from competitors, but not necessarily copying them.

What does Amazon mean by saying employees have the 'freedom' and 'expectation' to focus on customer needs?

Amazon gives its employees the freedom and expectation to independently assess customer needs and find ways to improve the customer experience. This ensures that everyone in the company plays a role in driving customer-centric innovation.

What was the impact of the company Cosmo on Amazon's approach to customer obsession?

The example of Cosmo, a company that promised fast video delivery but failed due to unsustainable economics, illustrates that customer obsession must also account for sustainability. Offering services that cannot be sustained is ultimately not serving customers in the long term.

Why is it important for Amazon to consider competitors' actions in product development?

It is important for Amazon to consider competitors' actions because if a competitor builds something that customers love, Amazon can learn from it and improve their own offerings. Being aware of competitors helps Amazon stay competitive and improve customer experiences.

How does Amazon demonstrate its commitment to customer obsession in its everyday operations?

Amazon demonstrates its commitment to customer obsession by constantly focusing on what customers care about, continuously innovating based on their feedback, and striving to improve the customer experience in every aspect of the business, from product development to pricing strategies.