Amazon leaders 'Are Right, A Lot.' Tell the story of a time when your strong judgment and instincts led you to make a good decision.
In your Brand Specialist interview, you will be asked questions related to Amazon's 4th Leadership Principle, 'Are Right, A Lot.' This principle states, 'Leaders are right a lot. They have strong judgment and good instincts. They seek diverse perspectives and work to disconfirm their beliefs.'
The phrasing of this Leadership Principle can be confusing to many. Essentially, the principle is stating that Amazon leaders are not always right, but they often are. They use good judgment and make instinctually correct decisions. Failure is acceptable; however, Amazonians do not continually make the same mistakes.
Individuals who are a good match for Amazon learn from their mistakes and avoid repeat failures. Considering this important Leadership Principle, the interviewer wants to hear evidence that you have the ability and confidence to use your strong instincts when facing a situation where you need to apply good judgment.
This answer requires storytelling. Choose a real-life example of a time when you trusted your instincts and the situation generated a positive outcome. Amazon asks that when you answer behavioral interview questions, you try to follow the STAR answer method. STAR is an acronym for Situation, Task, Action, Result.
- Situation: Provide the contextual information the interviewer needs to know to make sense of your story.
- Task: Continuing to set the stage, give the interviewer an idea of your role and responsibilities in this story.
- Action: Next, offer a detailed description of the steps you took in this story.
- Result: Last, talk about the specific, measurable outcomes that resulted from your actions.
If you have work experience, it's best to provide an example from your professional life. If you are new to your career, consider an example from your post-secondary education, a team sport, volunteer commitment, or a club-based activity. Whichever story example you decide to use, be sure to showcase your logic and reasoning abilities.
"(Situation & Task) I currently work for Company XYZ as a Store Manager. Last week, an upset customer emailed our corporate office to complain that one of my staff members was rude to them. The District Manager called me to discuss the situation. While the District Manager described the chain of events as outlined in this disgruntled customers' email, I instinctually began to feel that the customers' account of the situation was inflated. I knew the character of the Associate this customer was talking about and wholeheartedly believed that she was not a rude-natured person. (Action) After hearing the District Manager out, I said that I would meet with the Associate to ask more questions before approaching any disciplinary action. Later that day, I had a meeting with the Associate and asked for her account of the situation. The Associate explained that the customers' purchase, a pair of shoes, had obviously been worn. Their purchase also fell past our store's 30-day return policy. The Associate politely declined to refund the customer's purchase and explained the return policy. The customer responded by verbally degrading the Associate, leaving the store in a fury, and then emailed our corporate office to complain. After meeting with the Associate, I called the District Manager to explain the other side of the story. The District Manager asked me to write the Associate up and instruct them to write an apology email to the customer. I felt it was in bad taste to apologize to the customer, considering they verbally attacked the Associate. My stance was that we should protect our employees first and not allow customers to behave this way towards our valued team members. I expressed that this decision would negatively impact our relationship with the employee. Still, the District Manager did not agree, and I was to instruct the Associate to apologize. (Result) As I suspected, the Associate became upset with the instructions to apologize. She said that she did not feel supported by the company, and she immediately gave her resignation. I reported the result to the District Manager. He apologized for ignoring my instincts and agreed that my initial assessment of the situation was correct. In the end, we lost a good Associate, and the customer felt justified for their unsavory behavior. Although I could not persuade my District Manager right away, this situation confirmed that I understand my team members and have a strong ability to read convoluted situations correctly. One factor that I greatly appreciate about Amazon is that the company looks for leaders who 'Are Right, A Lot.' Amazon encourages its leaders to use their instinct and good judgment to lead the company and their team to success. I am eager to join a work environment where thinking like a leader is encouraged at all levels."
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