Amazon Engineering Program Manager II reviews

3.4

58% would recommend to a friend

(2,298 total reviews)
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Andrew Jassy

32% approve of CEO

53% positive business outlook

Engineering Program Manager II employees have rated Amazon with 3.4 out of 5 stars, based on 2,298 company reviews on Glassdoor. This indicates that most Engineering Program Manager II professionals have a good working experience there. Amazon is rated in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) by Engineering Program Manager II professionals compared to other employers within the Tecnologías de la información industry (3.9 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews
4.0
Feb 7, 2015

Program Manager

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The opportunity to solve cutting edge problems with incredibly intelligent people. Rapid growth and innovation means there is never a dull moment, and you can rise extremely quickly if you have the chops and are willing to put in the work. The company encourages frequent cross-functional rotations, so you can gain a diverse skill quickly. The matrix environment allows employees to gain a technical, diverse skill-set that is applicable to most tech companies. By far the most exciting place I have ever worked.

Cons

The frequent growth and belief in running a lean organization on darwinist principles ("if they can't manage a huge amount of responsibility with a small team, we don't have the right people") leads to constant turnover, long hours, and sometimes unfair expectations. The emphasis on intentionally rotating talent compounds this problem. Sometimes it feels like the company is placing too much emphasis on broadening its scope, and not enough on solidifying its base. Extremely technical environment with minimal documentation for some critical systems and functions, which results in inefficiency/misses, and an aggressive learning curve for many positions.

1.0
Feb 6, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Definite leaders in customer satisfaction. Amazon has even surpassed Disney. If you are an Amazon customer, you can bear witness of this. Several opportunities and groups. People can make lateral moves with support from their superiors. Interesting approach of conducting meetings with no Power Point presentations, but rather having everyone spend 15 minutes reading a 6 page document, then everyone having a very productive 45 minute discussion. Purchases made at Amazon can be delivered at lockers under your building, which is very convenient. No employee discounts, though. Orca card can be useful, as parking is limited and super expensive in South Lake Union and downtown Seattle. Best interview experience in the sense that it was quick, very well organized and recruiter kept me very well informed from beginning to end (very hard interviews, though).

Cons

No work life balance: Long hours, several midnight launches scheduled even on major holidays and weekends, and no extra days off to compensate. On call 7 days a week every few weeks. Working from home even occasionally, is not well seen. Frugality is a company value, but they take it to the extreme. If you need a headset because your job requires several phone calls, you have to purchase it. I needed Visio because my job requires several diagrams, and I was told to draw them by hand instead. T&E below the industry, you end up putting money out of your pocket on business trips. Being self critical is another company value, but leadership understands it as only providing negative feedback, not acknowledging achievements, and disregarding wins. With time this becomes discouraging and frustrating. Following the example of many managers and directors, people tend to be confrontational and destructive. People confuse being professionally aggressive with being aggressive at each other. Never in 25 years I have heard so many people cursing in meetings and even worse, trying to publicly embarrass their peers when they disagree. Very high turnaround. In my group, 12 people have left in just five months. This increases the workload even more for the ones still left. Very hard for people who care about their families to succeed. Especially moms with young kids have a very hard time meeting their goals. If their kids get sick, they get whines for having to work from home. If you care about your family and dream of working in Amazon, think it twice. Seriously. Look in YouTube for the documentary the BBC produced with a hidden camera in the UK fulfilment center. You will get an idea of how little employees are valued in this company.

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