In an Amazon interview, simply saying "I worked hard" will not evaluate your results. What is important is to show the results in concrete numbers. Amazon has a “data-oriented” corporate culture, and using numbers to prove your achievements in interviews will lead to high evaluations. In this article, we will introduce the importance of speaking in numbers and specific techniques that can be used in interviews.
Why are numbers important in Amazon interviews?
Amazon's culture and focus on data
At Amazon, many of our decisions are based on data and results. This culture is strongly reflected in interviews, where interviewers focus on how well you base your results on data. Even if you are in a business or non-engineering position, you need to be able to demonstrate your results using numbers.
Advantages of speaking in numbers
Using numbers objectively proves your contribution and leaves a strong impression on the interviewer. Numbers are a powerful tool that eliminates emotion and concretely shows achievements. Therefore, it is very effective in differentiating yourself from other candidates.
Techniques for appealing with numbers
1. Clarify specific results
In order to convey your achievements in numbers, it is important to clarify tangible results. For example, use measurable metrics such as increased sales, cost savings, number of customers, or time to complete a project.
Example: Increased sales
“Over the past year, the sales of the e-commerce site I worked on increased by 15%. This was achieved by improving our promotional efforts and improving the customer experience.”
Example: Increase in number of customers
“We implemented a new marketing campaign and increased the number of new customers by 30% in six months.”
2. Be specific about the goals you achieved.
It is also very important to show how much you have achieved towards your goals. By setting goals and expressing the degree of achievement in numbers, the sense of accomplishment and degree of contribution become clearer.
Example: Goal achievement
"We had set a monthly sales target of 2 million yen, but we actually achieved 2.5 million yen. This contributed to improving the team's performance."
3. Actions taken to solve the problem and their results
It is also important to show the challenges you faced, the actions you took to address them, and the results in numbers. Effective in demonstrating problem-solving skills.
Example: Results of problem solving
“We reviewed our supply chain and introduced new processes to reduce shipping delays. As a result, our on-time delivery rate increased from 80% to 98%.”
4. How to demonstrate results that are difficult to quantify
Even if there are unquantifiable outcomes, it is possible to emphasize process improvements and efficiencies. Even if quantitative indicators are difficult, show tangible results and the degree of improvement.
Example: Contribution that is difficult to quantify
“As a project manager, I improved my team's productivity by improving sprint planning and progress management.As a result, I reduced project delivery delays by 50%.”
What number does the interviewer look for?
Indicators that interviewers value
Amazon interviewers are looking at how much of an impact you have made. Therefore, the following metrics will help you highlight your contribution:
- sales
- profit margin
- cost reduction
- Acquire new customers
- customer satisfaction
- Project on-time delivery rate
By using these metrics, you can concretely convey how much you contributed to the business.
How to convey numbers in any situation
If there are no quantitative results
Even if you feel that you have not achieved quantitative results, there are ways to express improvements and process changes in numbers. Convey the effectiveness of your actions by highlighting the degree of change before and after the improvement.
Example: Effects of process improvement
“We automated the data aggregation work that was previously done manually, and as a result, we improved operational efficiency by 30%.”
Summary
In the Amazon interview, it is extremely important to demonstrate your accomplishments in numbers. By using quantitative data, you can strongly impress the interviewer with your abilities, so master how to prove your contribution with numbers and lead to a successful interview.
Therefore, we recommend the GCAP AMAZON service.
We are not just a “career move school for international companies”, but we will update “your strengths” to a form that will work on Amazon, and support you until you succeed in the interview. We also offer free interviews, so if you have any concerns about whether you can really succeed at Amazon, please feel free to contact us.
Author
Global Career Incubator Co., Ltd. CEO Shinichi Ikawa
Biography: Entered the business world after working for the Ministry of Defense (National Class I) and the Australian Ministry of Defence. After working at a major real estate company, he started a real estate venture and experienced management and recruitment at a domestic fund, domestic business company, and overseas tech company before founding our company.
Developed a career accelerator program based on my experience as a corporate manager and hiring manager. We specialize in foreign-affiliated, bilingual, and senior talent, and support individual career advancement and corporate organizational strength and efficiency.