Working Backwards Quotes

“Over the course of many years, Amazon has put in place mechanisms to ensure that the Leadership Principles translate into action. Three foundational mechanisms are: the annual planning process; the S-Team goals process (the S-Team consists of the senior vice presidents and direct reports to Jeff Bezos); and Amazon’s compensation plan, which aligns incentives with what’s best for customers and the company over the long term.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“There’s a saying often heard at Amazon: “Good intentions don’t work. Mechanisms do.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“People often ask, “How do you remember all 14 principles?” The answer is not that we are particularly good at memorization. In fact, if a company’s principles must be memorized, it’s a warning sign that they aren’t sufficiently woven into the fabric of that company.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Amazon now has 14 Leadership Principles—notably more than most companies have. They are displayed right on the Amazon website along with this explanation: “We use our Leadership Principles every day, whether we’re discussing ideas for new projects or deciding on the best approach to solving a problem. It is just one of the things that makes Amazon peculiar.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“In the 2015 shareholder letter, Jeff wrote, “You can write down your corporate culture, but when you do so, you’re discovering it, uncovering it—not creating it.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Because these processes and practices are embedded in every meeting, document, decision, interview, and performance discussion, following them becomes second nature over time. And any employee who violates them draws attention to themselves like a person loudly scratching their fingernails across a chalkboard. If, for example, a person spoke up at a meeting and suggested an idea that was obviously geared toward short-term considerations and ignored significant longer-term ones, or proposed something that was competitor- rather than customer-centric, there would be an uncomfortable pause before someone pointed out what was on everyone else’s mind. While this practice may not be unique to Amazon, it is a defining element of its success.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“What distinguishes Amazon is that its Leadership Principles are deeply ingrained in every significant process and function at the company. In many cases, the principles dictate a way of thinking or doing work that is different from the way that most companies operate.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“From the tone of customer emails to the condition of the books and their packaging, Jeff had one simple rule: “It has to be perfect.” He’d remind his team that one bad customer experience would undo the goodwill of hundreds of perfect ones.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“The customer is also at the center of how we analyze and manage performance metrics. Our emphasis is on what we call controllable input metrics, rather than output metrics. Controllable input metrics (e.g., reducing internal costs so you can affordably lower product prices, adding new items for sale on the website, or reducing standard delivery time) measure the set of activities that, if done well, will yield the desired results, or output metrics (such as monthly revenue and stock price).”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“But we find that when we talk to colleagues about introducing Amazon’s principles to their workplace, they often respond with some version of, “But you had a lot more resources and money, not to mention Jeff Bezos. We don’t.” We’re here to tell you that you do not need Amazon’s capital (in fact Amazon was capital constrained for most of our years there), nor do you need Jeff Bezos (though if he is available to work on your project, we’d highly recommend him!).”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“But it’s typical in that he faced challenging situations such as this one—playing a sport he almost never practiced in front of a big crowd—with optimism, humor, and his well-known infectious laugh. This is the same spirit with which he faced his daily business decisions that were bigger than most people make in their whole careers. He truly embodies the Amazon motto, “Work hard, have fun, make history.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Jeff described Amazon this way: “Our culture is four things: customer obsession instead of competitor obsession; willingness to think long term, with a longer investment horizon than most of our peers; eagerness to invent, which of course goes hand in hand with failure; and then, finally, taking professional pride in operational excellence.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“the simplest and best distillation is still that of founder Jeff Bezos (hereafter referred to as Jeff): “We have an unshakeable conviction that the long-term interests of shareowners are perfectly aligned with the interests of customers.”2 In other words, while it’s true that shareholder value stems from growth in profit, Amazon believes that long-term growth is best produced by putting the customer first.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Leaders do not believe their body odor smells of perfume”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“XMR control charts,”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“The key to these meetings is to create a balance between extremely high standards and an atmosphere where people feel comfortable talking about mistakes.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Andon Cord”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“The Dive Deep leadership principle states, “Leaders operate at all levels, stay connected to the details, audit frequently, and are skeptical when metrics and anecdotes differ. No task is beneath them.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Data Combined with Anecdote to Tell the Whole Story”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Not Every Chart Compares Against Goals”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“output metrics—the data we graphed above—are far poorer indicators of trend causes than input metrics”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Output Metrics Show Results. Input Metrics Provide Guidance.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“YOY growth rates in addition to the underlying metric you are measuring is a great way to spot trends.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Every week they review the deck before the WBR and respond by discussing what action they plan to take to address the variances.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“Our business owners own metrics and are prepared to explain variances”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“We focus on variances and don’t waste time on the expected”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“looks at the same set of data every week, in the same order,”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“A good deck uses a consistent format throughout—the graph design, time periods covered, color palette, symbol set (for current year/prior year/goal), and the same number of charts on every page wherever possible.”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“We use consistent and familiar formatting to speed interpretation”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon

“A well-run WBR meeting is defined by intense customer focus, deep dives into complex challenges, and insistence on high standards and operational excellence”
― Colin Bryar, Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon