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Is working at AWS hellish? Or once you get in it's just a normal job? I get its heavily dependent on the team, just wondering from your perspective.

shitlord 6y ago
AWS is huge, so YMMV across teams. Some teams have operational and funding issues, so your experience there may be hellish. You could think of it another way and realize that you have your work cut out for you. I previously worked on an AWS team like this and left because I got tired of the grind. On the other hand, a lot of teams are great places to work. Before I left AWS, I worked on a really good team with intelligent co-workers and interesting engineering challenges. It was like night and day - the team was over-funded and had very few operational issues.
- rory_isAdonk 6y ago
  That's great to hear. Often online all you hear are the extremes at both ends. I hear that you're basically put on PIP as soon as you join, any truth to this?
  - shitlord 6y ago
    I was never a manager so I don't know the official policies around dev lists and PIPs. Generally, new hires are given a few months to ramp up and become contributing team members. People are usually placed on the dev list if they don't meet expectations, and placed on a PIP if their performance does not improve. I'm guessing it reflects poorly on managers if they devlist someone shortly after hiring them. During my time at Amazon, I know only one person who was placed on a PIP and he was kind of a bad engineer. But I have heard stories of managers abusing the dev list to meet org-level dev list quotas.
    - cdcarter 6y ago
      What is the "dev list"
      - forty 6y ago
        Seems to be an Amazon thing https://www.teamblind.com/post/What-is-Dev-list-at-Amazon-xp5KPOZL https://www.teamblind.com/post/What-is-Dev-list-at-Amazon-xp... It doesn't say what "dev" stands for though.
  - julianozen 6y ago
    No there isnt. I have only known of one person to get a PIP during my 3 years there, and it took way longer then it should've
    - rory_isAdonk 6y ago
      Ah that was my fear, not because I feel like I'm a terrible software engineer and I'd be asking for PIP by joining Amazon. More just because mortgages etc, I'm very anxious money wise.
      - julianozen 6y ago
        You'll be fine. Amazon didn't become the company it is today by burning out hardworking and talented engineers for no reason. In the scenario I am referring to, the engineer did a very poor job of communication and receiving feedback. When your company is as big as Amazon, you're going to have some people who didn't quite fit. The people who succeeded there don't spend their time talking to journalists or complaining on HN Overall, I spent my time there working with ambitious and smart people. And money-wise, I feel like you can't work at a safer place in the tech industry then at a FAANG company, particularly Amazon.
        rory_isAdonk 6y ago
        Great I had aimed for applying for Stripe in August, again my anxiety is consistent I've quite a encompassing study guide I've made for myself. Thanks though man you insight is invaluable.
- gigatexal 6y ago
  Crazy to think that such a profitable unit like AWS could have teams that are hurting for funding. I guess it’s run like that though.
  - ryanianian 6y ago
    Every company struggles with 'properly' managing funding and resources.
  - julianozen 6y ago
    I think AWS teams are not generally hurting for funding. You see that more in retail parts of amazon
- cpufry 6y ago
  > It was like night and day - the team was over-funded and had very few operational issues. oh god which service/team/
randomanon2020 6y ago
I was recently interviewed for AWS, and its a JOKE :), i said i was proficient in Linux and all the questions i was asked was about docker.. and this is just one example out of 100 :)
- Google234 6y ago
  Yeah, you sound credible/s
- wrinkl3 6y ago
  > i said i was proficient in Linux and all the questions i was asked was about docker Why is that bad? The purpose of an interview is to see if you're fit for the role, not quiz you on the skills on your resume.
julianozen 6y ago
I enjoyed my team and the work hours were reasonable. AWS wasn't the type of product work I wanted to keep pursing, but I learned a lot in my time there. Amazon team's culture vary widely depending on the teams budget, management style and deadlines. Overall I enjoyed my time at Amazon
- MikeTheGreat 6y ago
  Several posts here mention the importance of budget/funding for creating a good team to work in (which is 100% reasonable - that's true everywhere). I'm curious about how individual teams within Amazon have funding problems. Amazon overall seems to have plenty of money and they seem like the sort of place that wouldn't have a problem dissolving a team that isn't meeting their goals (I'm assuming they'd dissolve the team and then move people they want to keep to other teams, etc - they seem like they'd be very data driven about what teams to keep, not malicious). Can anyone shed light on how a team might develop funding / budget issues at a place like Amazon?
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - julianozen 6y ago
    From my time at Amazon, I wasn't really a part of these decisions so the following is just my anecdotal perception those businesses and how often teams had things like lunches, team events and hired staff In general, if the underlying business is profitable or if the product is experimental Amazon will allocate a larger budget to the team - Retail has narrow profits and is fairly well established -> Lower budgets - AWS is very profitable -> High budget - Alexa (while I was there) was growing very fast and was trying crazy initiatives -> High budget Contrast this to my impression of Google, where it seems like every team has roughly the same perks but only a few make money
belval 6y ago
Not OP and YMMV but I really like my team and the engineering/research challenges we face are interesting. I read the infamous "stay the fk away from Amazon" (https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/comments/3ce0s8/dear_amazon_interns_some_advice_from_an_old_man/ https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/comments/3ce0s8/dear_amazon...) before I was hired and the author's experience is completely misaligned with mine.

shitlord 6y ago

AWS is huge, so YMMV across teams. Some teams have operational and funding issues, so your experience there may be hellish. You could think of it another way and realize that you have your work cut out for you. I previously worked on an AWS team like this and left because I got tired of the grind. On the other hand, a lot of teams are great places to work. Before I left AWS, I worked on a really good team with intelligent co-workers and interesting engineering challenges. It was like night and day - the team was over-funded and had very few operational issues.

rory_isAdonk 6y ago
That's great to hear. Often online all you hear are the extremes at both ends. I hear that you're basically put on PIP as soon as you join, any truth to this?
- shitlord 6y ago
  I was never a manager so I don't know the official policies around dev lists and PIPs. Generally, new hires are given a few months to ramp up and become contributing team members. People are usually placed on the dev list if they don't meet expectations, and placed on a PIP if their performance does not improve. I'm guessing it reflects poorly on managers if they devlist someone shortly after hiring them. During my time at Amazon, I know only one person who was placed on a PIP and he was kind of a bad engineer. But I have heard stories of managers abusing the dev list to meet org-level dev list quotas.
  - cdcarter 6y ago
    What is the "dev list"
    - forty 6y ago
      Seems to be an Amazon thing https://www.teamblind.com/post/What-is-Dev-list-at-Amazon-xp5KPOZL https://www.teamblind.com/post/What-is-Dev-list-at-Amazon-xp... It doesn't say what "dev" stands for though.
- julianozen 6y ago
  No there isnt. I have only known of one person to get a PIP during my 3 years there, and it took way longer then it should've
  - rory_isAdonk 6y ago
    Ah that was my fear, not because I feel like I'm a terrible software engineer and I'd be asking for PIP by joining Amazon. More just because mortgages etc, I'm very anxious money wise.
    - julianozen 6y ago
      You'll be fine. Amazon didn't become the company it is today by burning out hardworking and talented engineers for no reason. In the scenario I am referring to, the engineer did a very poor job of communication and receiving feedback. When your company is as big as Amazon, you're going to have some people who didn't quite fit. The people who succeeded there don't spend their time talking to journalists or complaining on HN Overall, I spent my time there working with ambitious and smart people. And money-wise, I feel like you can't work at a safer place in the tech industry then at a FAANG company, particularly Amazon.
      - rory_isAdonk 6y ago
        Great I had aimed for applying for Stripe in August, again my anxiety is consistent I've quite a encompassing study guide I've made for myself. Thanks though man you insight is invaluable.
gigatexal 6y ago
Crazy to think that such a profitable unit like AWS could have teams that are hurting for funding. I guess it’s run like that though.
- ryanianian 6y ago
  Every company struggles with 'properly' managing funding and resources.
- julianozen 6y ago
  I think AWS teams are not generally hurting for funding. You see that more in retail parts of amazon
cpufry 6y ago
> It was like night and day - the team was over-funded and had very few operational issues. oh god which service/team/

randomanon2020 6y ago

I was recently interviewed for AWS, and its a JOKE :), i said i was proficient in Linux and all the questions i was asked was about docker.. and this is just one example out of 100 :)

Google234 6y ago
Yeah, you sound credible/s
wrinkl3 6y ago
> i said i was proficient in Linux and all the questions i was asked was about docker Why is that bad? The purpose of an interview is to see if you're fit for the role, not quiz you on the skills on your resume.

julianozen 6y ago

I enjoyed my team and the work hours were reasonable. AWS wasn't the type of product work I wanted to keep pursing, but I learned a lot in my time there. Amazon team's culture vary widely depending on the teams budget, management style and deadlines. Overall I enjoyed my time at Amazon

MikeTheGreat 6y ago
Several posts here mention the importance of budget/funding for creating a good team to work in (which is 100% reasonable - that's true everywhere). I'm curious about how individual teams within Amazon have funding problems. Amazon overall seems to have plenty of money and they seem like the sort of place that wouldn't have a problem dissolving a team that isn't meeting their goals (I'm assuming they'd dissolve the team and then move people they want to keep to other teams, etc - they seem like they'd be very data driven about what teams to keep, not malicious). Can anyone shed light on how a team might develop funding / budget issues at a place like Amazon?
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- julianozen 6y ago
  From my time at Amazon, I wasn't really a part of these decisions so the following is just my anecdotal perception those businesses and how often teams had things like lunches, team events and hired staff In general, if the underlying business is profitable or if the product is experimental Amazon will allocate a larger budget to the team - Retail has narrow profits and is fairly well established -> Lower budgets - AWS is very profitable -> High budget - Alexa (while I was there) was growing very fast and was trying crazy initiatives -> High budget Contrast this to my impression of Google, where it seems like every team has roughly the same perks but only a few make money

belval 6y ago

Not OP and YMMV but I really like my team and the engineering/research challenges we face are interesting. I read the infamous "stay the fk away from Amazon" (https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/comments/3ce0s8/dear_amazon_interns_some_advice_from_an_old_man/ https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/comments/3ce0s8/dear_amazon...) before I was hired and the author's experience is completely misaligned with mine.