Amazon Phone Interview Questions And How To Prepare For It ?

One of the Big Five in the US alongside Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Facebook, Amazon Inc., is a multinational company that specializes in e-commerce, artificial intelligence, digital streaming, and cloud computing. Amazon Inc. was founded by former CEO Jeff Bezos, on July 5th, 1994, in Belle Vue, Washington, United States. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Amazon now owns more than 40 subsidiaries, a few of which are- Audible, Whole Foods Market, Blink Home, IMDb TV, Alexa Internet, and Double Helix Games. Amazon has its own career page where you can look for job vacancies in Amazon Centers/Offices in your city. No matter what job position you are applying for, the recruitment and selection procedure is more or less the same. First, you submit your application along with your resume and cover letter through their portal. If your application is shortlisted, you will receive an email or any other form of notification about a phone interview. With over 13,35,000 employees all over the globe, with the company still growing day by day, Amazon is looking for new recruits most of the time. In this article we will know about amazon phone interview questions and how to prepare for it.

Amazon Phone Interview Questions And How To Prepare For It 

Amazon Phone Interview Process:

Before you start off with the interview, make sure you are armed with information on and about Amazon; knowing the company’s beliefs, mission and values are very important when appearing for a phone screening. Here are some things you should know about Amazon before that phone call arrives-

  • Amazon is massively customer-centric: Amazon pays most heed to its customers and frames all its new ventures, developments, and strategies around its customers. Needless to say, customers receive topmost priority in this company; if this entails taking risks and even failing at certain ventures at times, Amazon would rather take such risks than not be customer-centric.
  • Amazon has several business teams: The business teams include the Device and Services, which are involved in the production, manufacture, and development of Kindle, Fire Stick, Fire TV, Echo, and Alexa. Next comes the Amazon Marketplace, which is concerned about the e-commerce website amazon.com which functions worldwide. Then is Web Services which is a cloud platform associated with content delivery, database storage, and other applications which help businesses increase reliability and flexibility. Another one is the Entertainment team which is concerned with the OTT platforms like Amazon Prime Video And Studios, Amazon Prime Music, and IMDb to name a few. Last but not the least, is the Retail team that deals with Whole Foods, Amazon Go, and other Amazon label products in both the digital and physical market.
  • Just like Amazon obsesses over its customers, the company is also big on its Leadership Principles. Remember to give those a read before you get the call. According to present employees, the best way to prepare for an Amazon interview is to see how many of these Leadership Principles you have applied in your previous work experiences; the more you are able to make the interviewer understand that you are, as a matter of fact, aware of these Leadership Principles and that you have displayed most of them previously and would do in future at Amazon if given the chance, the better for you. Amazon phone interviews are heavily based on the following principles. Some of these Leadership Principles that Amazon values so much are-
  • Leaders work hard to create and maintain the customer’s trust.
  • Leaders own up and take responsibility
  • Leaders invent and simplify; they urge their team members to be creative and come up with new, innovative ideas, and work to simplify complicated ideas.
  • Leaders do not work for short-term gratification; they prioritize long-term results over short-term benefits.
  • Leaders are willing to learn and are open-minded; they always are looking for ways to improve themselves and are open to learning from others. Leaders take up the opinions of the rest of the team and help the group collectively agree to a decision.
  • Leaders think big and prefer the highest possible standards. Sometimes this can be interpreted as having unrealistic expectations from the team, but leaders are never afraid of taking such risks and ask their team to put in their best effort in order to get the best possible result.
  • Leaders are resourceful and try to make the most out of the limited resources available. They do not like to unnecessarily work with excess resources.
  • Leaders earn the trust of other employees and deliver results. They are open to criticism and are always seeking to learn from the other members of the team. Constructive criticism is encouraged by leaders. They deliver results on time and do not compromise on the quality of work at any level.
  • Leaders take calculated risks and are ready to face failure, if and when it happens.
  • Leaders do not compromise and commit to a decision once taken.

The more of these Leadership Principles you display and can talk about, the better for you.

Amazon Phone Interview:

When you start off with the phone interview, first, you will be asked some background questions mostly to clarify the information you have provided in your application. Background questions will mostly revolve around your previous workplace, why you decided to leave, any recommendation letters you have added with your application, etc. following this part, are the behavioral questions. 

Most of Amazon’s interviews heavily consist of behavioral and situation-based questions. These questions will either be from a hypothetical situation in mind, or from your previous professional experience. Remember that most of these questions will be framed around Amazon’s Leadership Principles; reading up on those beforehand will be of some help to you during the actual phone screening. Keep in mind that Amazon appreciates when you answer questions in a well-structured and concise manner, using examples and data wherever possible. Below are a few sample questions that you can expect during this interview-

  • Can you tell us of a time when you had to take a risk and you were not successful in the venture? How did you handle the situation? What do you think you could have done instead, which might have saved the venture from failing?

For questions like these, remember to be very concise and crisp while delivering your answer. Start with briefly describing why you decided to take the risk, and then develop into what you did when the venture failed. Lastly, list what you learned from the experience and what you could have done to prevent the failure.

  • Have you had to assume leadership in a workspace? Did you have a smooth experience with the colleagues you worked with?

Do not just word-vomit about your experience; answer in a systematic manner, maintaining professionalism. And do not name-drop any colleague you used to work with.

  • Hypothetically speaking, you are put in a group project with a bunch of individuals who do not seem to be keen on cooperating with you. how to do you bring about coordination in the team?
  • Have you ever proposed a new idea or a new strategy to your seniors/boss? Could you tell us the details of how it went down?

For technical roles like software development, the interview is organized in a slightly different manner, the details of which are mentioned on Amazon’s career page.

Some Things To Pay Attention To Regarding The Interview And Some Tips:

  • For the interview, arrange for a stable internet connection and have access to your email, and a copy of the resume you submitted as a part of your application, in front of you.
  • Try to be in a place/room which is as quiet as possible, to avoid distractions and unwanted background noise during the interview.
  • Be ready to note down the information you will be given with the behavioral questions.
  • Some job positions require you to sit for position-related online assessments; you will be notified beforehand if you need to appear for any online assessments, as a part of the interview process.
  • Make sure you have thoroughly read and are aware of the mission statement, belief system, and values Amazon holds, along with their prized Leadership Principles. Also, preparing the answers to commonly asked questions like why should you be hired, and what interested you in working for Amazon.
  • Ask for a minute or two to collect your thoughts before answering any question. It will help you frame your answer, put the points that you want to touch on in a proper sequence, and ultimately allow you to give a well-thought-out, concise answer.
  • If you have any doubt or need any clarification on any part of the question that you have been asked, do not hesitate to ask. Interviewers appreciate when you are frank with them; asking questions also makes you sound professional and creates an impression that you are serious about this opportunity.
  • Amazon sometimes holds virtual interviews instead of regular phone screenings; you will be notified well in advance if you are required to attend a virtual interview. For this, you will need to download Amazon’s preferred mode of video conferencing, named Amazon Chime. The meeting details will be emailed to you by the recruiters.
More Relevant Questions:

What happens after the phone interview?

Amazon typically gets back to the candidates within two business days after the phone interview. 

How long are Amazon phone interviews?

Amazon phone interviews last for approximately an hour, for the entire process, including verification of background details, behavioral questions, and technical questions, if necessary.

How to end a phone interview?

You should ideally end a phone call interview on a positive note, thanking the interviewers for their time and for giving you this opportunity.

Amazon Phone Interview Questions And How To Prepare For It ?

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