What It Does: Amazon is involved in several business ventures, including information technology, artificial intelligence, digital advertising, eCommerce, media streaming, financial technology, video gaming, consumer electronics, media publishing, etc.
Mission: Amazon has a simple mission which is to be the most customer-centric company in the world.
Size and Presence: Amazon has a workforce comprising over 2000 full-time and part-time employees across its offices in Singapore.
Best Known For: Amazon has one of the most popular eCommerce platforms in the world and, as of 2023, is the largest online retailer globally. In the 2018 edition of Morning Consult, Amazon was ranked first on the list of the Most Admired Employers in Singapore. In the 2020 edition of Forbes’ World Best Employers, Amazon was ranked second.
The Good Bits: The company offers its employees generous incentives and benefits. The pay is competitive. Amazon is a great place to launch and advance one’s career.
The Not-So-Good Bits: The work is hectic. The fast-paced nature of the working environment may be overwhelming for many people.
Amazon was established by Jeff Bezos in 1994 in Seattle. Bezos chose this location because it was filled with skilled IT experts. Three years later, Amazon became a publicly traded firm and started selling media content such as videos and music the following year. It also expanded internationally by purchasing digital book retailers in Europe. Soon after, Amazon added home improvement items, video games, software, and consumer electronics to its catalogue of products. In 2002, the company launched Amazon Web Services, a platform that provided an interface for developers to build web applications.
Four years later, Amazon launched the Fulfillment by Amazon Program, which enabled third-party retailers to market their products through Amazon's infrastructure. As of 2008, amazon.com had more than 600 visitors annually. In 2011, Amazon agreed to a partnership with DC Comics for the exclusive digital distribution rights of best-selling comics, including Superman, Batman, The Sandman, etc. Two years later, it partnered with the US postal service to ship deliveries on Sundays. Amazon began operations in Singapore in 2019. In 2021, Bezos vacated the position of the company’s CEO to assume office as the chairman of the company’s executive board. As of 2022, Amazon.com grew to have more than 2 billion visitors annually.
Amazon is one of the best employers to work for because of its enviable work culture. The company is guided by four values - customer obsession, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Their employees are friendly, and they treat each other with respect. They also extend this vibe to new intakes, such as fresh graduates and interns. The work is very collaborative, which has been key in strengthening the interpersonal relationships between workers in the company. The management listens to the employees and considers them when making a decision. Amazon is a very diverse and inclusive environment accommodating various nationalities, gender, sexual orientations, marital status, socioeconomic background, and religions.
Amazon frequently organises upskilling programs for its employees to prepare them for in-demand and high-paying technical and non-technical jobs within the company and beyond. Through its workforce program, the company equips its employees with critical skills. The company also offers internship programs that target undergraduates, graduates, and postgraduates. It immerses them into life at Amazon. They are placed in teams and assigned a manager and mentor. They also get the opportunity to work on real tasks, which they will present to the employees.
Amazon’s hiring process entails fielding online applications, selecting suitable candidates and subjecting them to an assessment, phone interview, and a face-to-face interview. Successful candidates are then offered the job role they applied for and onboarded.
A fresh graduate working at Amazon will earn an average annual pay of SGD 40,000.
Through Amazon Future Engineer, the company has invested millions of dollars in STEM education to enable children and young adults from underrepresented communities in Singapore to learn computer science. The company is also a regular donor to several charities around the world.