An interesting place to work... for a while. - Senior Software Engineer Amazon Employee Review

4.0
4 Feb 2009
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

If you are on the right team, your work will have a tangible impact on millions of people, and as an engineer, it is interesting and gratifying to work on the large scale, difficult software problems. Direction is still very much set by Jeff Bezos, but to his credit he has made a lot of bold but correct decisions in the lifetime of the company. While the startup culture has faded a bit, that does mean that you can maintain a surprisingly good work-life balance while still working on interesting things.

Cons

The culture at Amazon is notoriously frugal, and that can feel penny-wise, pound-foolish after a while. The startup culture that existed in the early days is also not as prevalent, which can make staying motivated somewhat challenging when surrounded by people of varying levels of motivation. In the technical career track, Amazon does a pretty poor job developing and enabling the growth of their employees, aside from the very early stages of an engineers career, unless the employee is inclined to move into a management track. This lack of career development can be compounded by the large operational responsibilities of many teams, which makes it difficult for engineers to find the time to interact with groups outside of their general are and explore other opportunities that could help foster career growth.

Explore other reviews about Amazon

5.0
12 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

There are consistent VET weakly to choice from.

Cons

Long 10h shifts can be sometime mentally draining.

5.0
10 Jan 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Really smart people, a lot of opportunity for growth, always encouraged to be innovative, think big, and create something new. Competitive salary and benefits with other major tech companies. 100% self motivating work environment. No dress code and 4 legged friends are welcome.

Cons

You have to be self motivated. NO ONE will hold your hand and tell you that you're doing a great job. If you need constant affirmations from management, this company isn't for you.

3159
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