amazon
Lean Thinking and the Amazon Kindle
I receive emails from recruiters – frequently. So, as a favor to them, I am posting a job for your interest: the hiring company is Amazon.com.
Below is one job description and contact information, but if you go to the Amazon.com website, there are over 50 open positions looking for people with experience in Lean Thinking and Six Sigma.
I receive emails from recruiters – frequently. So, as a favor to them, I am posting a job for your interest: the hiring company is Amazon.com.
Below is one job description and contact information, but if you go to the Amazon.com website, there are over 50 open positions looking for people with experience in Lean Thinking and Six Sigma.
Goodbye Customer: Loyalty, Costs, Complexity, and Recovery
Goodbye Customer.
That is sometimes what we say, without knowing the full costs and burden that proposition means on the business. Ironically, businesses are often unaware that their actions are pushing the customer away while at the same time trying to recover and retain them through expensive customer retention programs. Metaphorically, this is like pushing the customer away and pulling the customer back — at the same time. It is no wonder that customers have had enough.
Goodbye Customer.
That is sometimes what we say, without knowing the full costs and burden that proposition means on the business. Ironically, businesses are often unaware that their actions are pushing the customer away while at the same time trying to recover and retain them through expensive customer retention programs. Metaphorically, this is like pushing the customer away and pulling the customer back — at the same time. It is no wonder that customers have had enough.
Amazon and Zappos Sitting in a Tree
As most you know by now, Zappos has entered into a definitive agreement with Amazon.com and will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon. This is exciting and, after speaking with my friends both at Amazon and at Zappos, they are all quite excited too. Congratulations to Amazon, Zappos, Tony Hsieh, and Jeff Bezos 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9.
As most you know by now, Zappos has entered into a definitive agreement with Amazon.com and will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon. This is exciting and, after speaking with my friends both at Amazon and at Zappos, they are all quite excited too. Congratulations to Amazon, Zappos, Tony Hsieh, and Jeff Bezos 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9.
The Source of Dirt
In Amazon’s 2008 letter to shareholders, Jeff Bezos shares about a Kaizen event he participated in:
At a fulfillment center recently, one of our Kaizen experts asked me, “I’m in favor of a clean fulfillment center, but why are you cleaning? Why don’t you eliminate the source of dirt?”
I’ve spoken numerous times about Bezos on Lean Thinking, some of which are here, here, here and here but there are many more — just browse shmula.
In Amazon’s 2008 letter to shareholders, Jeff Bezos shares about a Kaizen event he participated in:
At a fulfillment center recently, one of our Kaizen experts asked me, “I’m in favor of a clean fulfillment center, but why are you cleaning? Why don’t you eliminate the source of dirt?”
I’ve spoken numerous times about Bezos on Lean Thinking, some of which are here, here, here and here but there are many more — just browse shmula.
Jeff Bezos and Root Cause Analysis
unrelated update:
I’m always impressed when CEO’s demonstrate Deming-like behavior as they lead; it’s rare, but there’s almost a magical, mobilizing, and inspiring force that happens when CEO’s or corporate leaders behave in a respectful, inspiring, common-sense, and thoughtful way.
Today, I’m reminded of an experience back in 2004 while I worked for Amazon.com — something Jeff Bezos did that I still carry with me to this day.
unrelated update:
I’m always impressed when CEO’s demonstrate Deming-like behavior as they lead; it’s rare, but there’s almost a magical, mobilizing, and inspiring force that happens when CEO’s or corporate leaders behave in a respectful, inspiring, common-sense, and thoughtful way.
Today, I’m reminded of an experience back in 2004 while I worked for Amazon.com — something Jeff Bezos did that I still carry with me to this day.
Not Accountable, Not Responsible
Team size can make a big difference in the success of your service or product. What is counterintuitive for most people is that the larger the team size, the lower the likelihood of success for your service or product. Why? Entropy can set in and large teams are inherently bad vehicles for communication. More insipid, however, is that the larger the team, there is a higher likelihood of accountability and responsibility being diffused across the team.
Team size can make a big difference in the success of your service or product. What is counterintuitive for most people is that the larger the team size, the lower the likelihood of success for your service or product. Why? Entropy can set in and large teams are inherently bad vehicles for communication. More insipid, however, is that the larger the team, there is a higher likelihood of accountability and responsibility being diffused across the team.
On Customer Obsession
I’d venture to say that most products and services are bloated with features that customers most likely don’t care for; I’ve been part of product development teams where the focus is on features, with an implicit goal to stuffing as many features as possible — in consumer packaged goods and in software. This is the wrong approach to developing memorable and sticky products.
I’d venture to say that most products and services are bloated with features that customers most likely don’t care for; I’ve been part of product development teams where the focus is on features, with an implicit goal to stuffing as many features as possible — in consumer packaged goods and in software. This is the wrong approach to developing memorable and sticky products.
Lean & Six Sigma at Amazon.com
A friend of mine recently contacted me, seeking my advice on how to get a job at Amazon.com; my friend is a top-notch software engineer, manager, and an all-around good person and leader. The job he is interested in is for a position as a software development manager in reverse-logistics at Amazon.com. My friend qualifies on most items, except for the last bullet below, requiring experience in Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma — for a software engineering job!:
A friend of mine recently contacted me, seeking my advice on how to get a job at Amazon.com; my friend is a top-notch software engineer, manager, and an all-around good person and leader. The job he is interested in is for a position as a software development manager in reverse-logistics at Amazon.com. My friend qualifies on most items, except for the last bullet below, requiring experience in Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma — for a software engineering job!:
Lost-in-Translation in Large Teams
Team size can make a big difference in the success of your service or product. What is counterintuitive for most people is that the larger the team size, the lower the likelihood of success for your service or product. Why? Entropy can set in and large teams are inherently bad vehicles for communication. In what follows, I show quantitatively how team size does have an impact on the effectiveness of communication and the eventual success of the service or product.
Team size can make a big difference in the success of your service or product. What is counterintuitive for most people is that the larger the team size, the lower the likelihood of success for your service or product. Why? Entropy can set in and large teams are inherently bad vehicles for communication. In what follows, I show quantitatively how team size does have an impact on the effectiveness of communication and the eventual success of the service or product.
Burden on People; Burden on Earth
On average, most business processes are inefficient and create an unhealthy amount of waste: once you learn to see the process waste all around — with Lean Thinking as your worldview — you will notice overprocessing, transportation, overproduction, waiting, inventory, motion, and defects. Aside from our processes producing waste, our processes also create burden on our people and also burden on the earth.
On average, most business processes are inefficient and create an unhealthy amount of waste: once you learn to see the process waste all around — with Lean Thinking as your worldview — you will notice overprocessing, transportation, overproduction, waiting, inventory, motion, and defects. Aside from our processes producing waste, our processes also create burden on our people and also burden on the earth.
