I applied online and received a request from HR for a phone interview just a couple weeks later. The phone interview was an hour, and they asked about my background, and to answer some simple questions about branding and marketing. I have my MBA and it seemed to be very case-study based.
Two days later, HR wrote back requesting a 2nd phone interview with a different person. It was pretty much identical to the first.
After the phone interview, the process went quickly and they asked me to come in that week for an afternoon of interviews. I think I met with 6 people total.
The process was AWFUL. So negative. Their strategy is to have all 6 people ask you the same questions, and see if you learn from the first and apply the new concepts in the second interview. It was very frustrating, because they would ask a question, I'd answer, then they'd repeat the question over and over, wanting me to come up with new answers. Example: "how would you make the amazon site more user friendly"? Or, "if you had to price DVDs, how would you go about it?". I would answer that I would want more information, i.e. sales targets, margin, inventory etc. My answer wouldn't be good enough, so they'd ask the question again, I'd answer differently, then they'd ask again and again! Then I'd start with a new interviewer, and went through the same song and dance 6 times over 6 hours. It was torment.
I'm a smart person with two degrees from top 20 business schools. I'm used to the socratic method and being put on the spot. This was a different experience, and a negative one to say the least.d
On my 3rd interview, a senior vendor manager finished meeting with me, then proceeded to review me to the next interviewer directly outside the conference room I was in. I could hear everything! So tacky and unprofessional.
The final interviewer asked me (again), how I would change the website. I gave the example of the camera category, and how the brand page didn't discern well between amateurs and professionals. Her response was to SLAM her pen on the table, then ask me to "sell it to her". I started saying the attributes of the pen and talking about how it would benefit her. Then she responded "you didn't ask if I was an amateur pen user or a professional". Just a jerk.
To top it off, the HR person brought a laptop in at the end of the day and I had to complete a 45 minute assessment test. It was an excel file with inventory, pricing, and margins of different DVDs. I had to price them for sale. Honestly, I just patched together equations and wrote different numbers. Without a buying background, I felt set up to fail. They would have known I didn't have those skills if they read my resume or the two phone interviewers had mentioned anything to her! It was painful.
Overall I'd say that Amazon is full of intelligent people and doing some great stuff. That said, I would never work there. People seem to hate their lives, are so uppity and negative. Not a culture I'd want to experience day after day.
