Amazon's Workplace Culture, How Job Leveling Works, and What It's Like to be an Engineer at Amazon

In today's conversation with former Amazon engineer Roman Yusufov, we discuss his perspective on Amazon's work culture, how the hiring panel works, the job leveling system, what to expect from a bar raiser interview, and much more. He shares tons of valuable advice on

Roman is a nine-year Amazon veteran and a Senior Software Engineer. Throughout his tenure, he's worked in various areas including Amazon Marketplace, Amazon Alexa and Amazon Logistics. He has extensive mentorship experience from giving guidance to orgs of 60-100 people to one on one mentorship of engineers of all levels.

Book a call with Roman here — https://app.carrus.io/s/roman-yusufov

Show notes and highlights

[4:30] Why the interview is like a mini version of the job
[8:15] How Amazon teams are structured
[11:40] The importance of Amazon Leadership Principles

[12:42] Roman's interview process at Amazon
[14:00] What to expect from an Amazon Bar Raiser interview
[19:30] What FAANG companies are really looking for

[21:20] How "Job Leveling" works at Amazon, from L4 to L8 and above
[30:00] Bar raisers at Amazon, their role and what to expect
[37:00] How the decision-making process looks like in the Hiring Panel

[42:00] Getting rejected for one role and re-interviewing for a new one. Position fit vs. company fit.
[45:40] Amazon's work culture, the NYT article about Amazon, and Roman's experience with work-life balance
[52:50] Roman's approach to Interview Prep and 2 things you need to remember

Questions, comments or feedback?

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