Interview Success Lab

How to Get Non Technical Jobs at Amazon?

Working with Amazon is no less than a feat in today's world. And why not? The MNC is everywhere! The company's value lies in trillion dollars and the growth is not going to stop anytime soon. If you have also been trying to get into this .amazing firm, you have reached the right spot. 

In this article, I am going to tell you how to get non-technical jobs at Amazon. But before that, let me answer why should you listen to my advice after all? 

A Little About Myself

Hello guys, I am a Sr. Strategist at Google. Just a few months before, I was working as a Vendor Manager in Amazon. Yes, that's one reason why I am good at this advice. So, my stint at Amazon lasted for more than 5 years during which I was a part of multiple hiring teams where I interviewed hundreds of candidates. Prior to Amazon, I also worked with another leading e-commerce website for 3 years. The experience also goes back to international retails companies but right now, let's just settle with the e-commerce part. 

As I mentioned earlier, I have interviewed hundreds of people for Amazon. So, I have been at both sides of the table. Though my experience, I would say the most difficult part is to get a call from Amazon in the first place. Once you have been shortlisted, the interview process is easy; provided you are prepared for the interview. For that, you don't even need a hi-fi degree. I, myself, come from humble beginnings where I did not even attend a regular college for my undergraduate degree. I also did my MBA from a rather mid-rated college. Even after this, I have reached this position - all with my skills and knowledge. 

Now, I am here to share some tips to help people who never had any guidance at the beginning of their career. Let's start. 

Step-By-Step Guide To Cracking Non-Technical Job Interview At Amazon

Step 1: The Application Process 

• First, browse jobs on Amazon career site: https://amazon.jobs/en/

• Apply only for roles that suit your current profile and apply only at recent openings. I would suggest 'less than a week' for a better chance of a conversion. Applying randomly for jobs more than 2 to 3 months old has negligible chances of conversion as thousands of people may have already applied to it. 

• Keep your CV short and crisp. Don't go on explaining each and everything on the CV. I personally have never exceeded more than a page even after working for 5 companies in my 10 years of career.  And my conversion rate was good (Got shortlisted at Amazon, Google, Walmart, Shell, etc.,). 

• Try adding some keywords in your CV to match with skillsets that are required in the job description for which you are applying.

• If you feel that you can do 50% of the responsibilities mentioned in the job profile. Apply!

Step 2: Preparing for the Interview 

• Once you get shortlisted, the recruiter will send you a detailed email on how you will be evaluated during the interview process along with some leadership principles of Amazon. For example,  ownership, dive deep, bias for action, etc. 

• The best way to succeed is to make a list of all the achievements, projects, tasks, or goals you have achieved in your career. Some tips for that are listed below: 

1. • Map all these examples in a format (Situation, Behaviour, Action, and Impact). Do not provide one-liner examples. Instead, make every instance crisp, complex, and valuable.

   • One example can fit into multiple leadership principles. So focus on good examples and recent ones. Avoid quoting old examples. 

   • Do not study from already solved questions and answers online. They will catch your lies. 

Step 3: During the interview 

• Few Basics: Dress for success. I personally suggest wearing solid color shirts or t-shirts, mainly navy blue, black, white, black, or grey. It has worked for me and I feel you look more professional in these colours.  

• Set Up Better Communication: Nowadays, interviews are being done online. In that case, make sure the background is plain and there is enough lighting on your face. If the interviewer finds it hard to communicate, it can impact your chances of selection. 

• Don't Rush: Treat the interview as a discussion and take time to respond. Do not be in a hurry. Understand the question. Ask any doubts you have about the questions and then answer. Use the most appropriate example that you have prepared to tackle the question.

• Use Pen and Paper/White Board: It can sometimes help you to structure your thoughts better and becomes easy for you to explain, and for the interviewer to understand. You can also use a calculator if required. But politely ask the interviewer if you can.

• Be Authentic: If you are trying to use an example where you are extrapolating facts or lying, it can lead to an uncomfortable situation that can impact your interview results. So avoid that and be honest. 

• Use Simple Language: Provide the context and background of your examples. Assume that interviewer does not know about your industry or process from where you are coming from and then explain. Do not use acronyms while providing examples. Be as simple and clear as possible. 

• Focus on Impact: In Amazon interviews, the interviewer is more interested in knowing how you behave in a specific situation. So rather than talking about your team, focus more on yourself and what actions you took, and what was the impact. You should have the numbers on top of your mind. 

  • For Example: The metric A was declined by XX% due to reasons x, y, z and I took actions b, c, d which helped in improving the metric A by XX+10%.This is just an example, you can add more content and provide background about the situation when talking about such situations.

• Repeating Examples: Do not repeat examples during different rounds of interviewers. It can be considered a red flag and can impact your chances of success. Also do not provide examples that are very basic and there is no or very little complexity involved

This approach is not just going to help you with Amazon interviews but other top FAANG companies as well. If you follow the above-mentioned tips, I think you will have more than 90% chance of success unless there is a better candidate and a limited no of openings.