I applied through a recruiter. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Amazon in Jun 2021
Interview
The interview took an hour, most of it was dedicated to a coding exercise.
I heard many times about not very favorable atmosphere at Amazon and now I completely can understand why.
I was given a concrete task and I think I offered the most efficient solution for it The interviewer rejected it saying it will not work. I went through the code serval times, and tried to get a hint from the reviewer why it would not, not avail. Just "No". Then I tried to explain line by line why it would work and the interviewer just went ballistic. I should have used his algorithm ! ( which I think is more verbose and less efficient)
There was zero efforts to try understanding the proposed solution and whole " I am always right" attitude
Surely one example is not a representation of the whole company, but I can only imagine what conditions software developers find themselves if they accept offers and find this situation in their teams. I will probably not get an offer, but I would not accept it if I got it.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
given a large set of production processes, where many depend on the others find the orders in which these processes can be executed.
Tough interview.
The Process: Automated Online Assessment (OA) with 2 coding questions and a system simulation, followed by a 4-round virtual Loop. Every single round started with 20 minutes of intense, behavioral behavioral questions diving into Amazon's Leadership Principles, followed by 25 minutes of technical coding or system design.
Amazon interviews are a test of mental endurance because you have to switch from deep behavioral storytelling straight into complex coding which can be so difficult. I used Apex Interviewer to practice the cognitive context switch. Running through their live-coding workspace helped me ensure my technical communication and architectural structures remained sharp and automatic, even after spending the first half of the interview defending my past project metrics. I fed the practice AI questions I extracted from glassdoor and gothamloop.
In the end, the offer was way lower than I hoped.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Design the backend inventory tracking and placement service for a global fulfillment network, ensuring strict transactional consistency across multiple regional warehouses during peak shopping events.
Initial screening call with recruiter followed by a 1 hr hacker rank question on DSA. The final round was a panel consisting of 4 interviews ranging from technical design, more DSA and behaviour questions.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Describe a time when you disagreed with your team and how you resolved it
Online Application & Assessment: Candidates apply via amazon.jobs and may be asked to complete online assessments (work simulations or technical tests).
Recruiter Phone Screen: A 30-60 minute interview to discuss your background, interest in the role, and initial behavioral questions.
Technical Phone Screen (For Tech Roles): A 60-minute interview focused on data structures, algorithms, and coding in a shared editor.
Interview Loop (Virtual/Onsite): The final stage, usually 3-5, 45-60 minute interviews held on the same day or over a few days.
Behavioral Questions: These focus on past behavior (STAR method: Situation, Task, Action, Result) mapped to Leadership Principles.
Technical/Functional Questions: Problem-solving, system design, or domain-specific questions.
Bar Raiser Interview: One interviewer is a "Bar Raiser," a neutral employee from another team tasked with ensuring hiring standards remain high.
Hiring Committee/Debrief: Interviewers meet to discuss candidate feedback and make a hiring decision.
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