Working Backwards

‘Essential for any leader in any industry’ – Kim Scott, bestselling author of Radical CandorWorking Backwards gives an insider’s account of Amazon’s approach to culture, leadership and best practices from two long-time, top-level Amazon executives.Colin Bryar and Bill Carr joined Amazon in the late 90s. Their time at the company covered a period of unmatched innovation that brought products and services – including Kindle, Amazon Prime, Amazon Echo and Alexa, and Amazon Web Services – to life. Through the story of these innovations they reveal the principles and practices that drive Amazon’s success.Through their wealth of experience they offer unprecedented access to the ‘Amazon way’ as it was refined, articulated and proven to be repeatable, scalable and adaptable. Working Backwards shows how success is not achieved by the genius of any single leader, but rather through commitment to and execution of a set of well-defined, rigorously executed principles and practices that you can apply at your own company, no matter the size.‘Working Backwards should be read by anyone interested in the real thing – the principles, processes and practices of twenty-first-century management and leadership’ – Forbes‘Gives us the story as it developed at the time – and that is probably worth the cover price of the book in itself’ – Financial Times

Jeff Bezos once told me that unlike Google or Apple, “Amazon doesn’t have one big advantage, so we have to braid a rope out of many small advantages”. Amazon has demonstrated again and again that success doesn’t result from one big stroke of genius, but from a set of clear business practices consistently and boldly applied. Colin Bryar and Bill Carr dive deep into how Amazon has become the company to study if you want to succeed in 21st-century business., For those looking to change the world in ways (very) large and small via innovation and business, my strong recommendation is to dive deeply into Working Backwards. Bill and Colin have delivered a rarity of immense value, which is a powerful, high-judgement dissection of the inputs to Amazon itself. I anticipate Working Backwards to quickly become required reading in board rooms and classrooms around the world, Colin Bryar and Bill Carr have operationalized the core management practices that lie behind Amazon's success. In particular, their insights into how any successful leader can focus on narrative and metrics to take a short-cut to the truth are essential for any leader in any industry. You'll want to have your highlighter ready and keep this book close at hand for quick reference., Colin and Bill give us an insider’s view of Amazon during what was an extraordinary period of growth for the organization. Having partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS) during my time at Red Hat and now at IBM, I can attest to their unrelenting commitment to customers. Leaders who want to foster customer obsession and drive operational excellence within their organizations should read this book., Working Backwards serves as a blueprint enabling leaders to implement guiding principles, operating rhythms and durable mechanisms that allow teams to scale effectively, even as your business expands at an accelerated clip. A must-read for every entrepreneur or business leader focused on driving growth.

Bill Carr joined Amazon in 1999 and spent more than fifteen years with the company. As Vice President of Digital Media, Bill launched and managed the company’s global digital music and video businesses, including Amazon Music, Prime Video, and Amazon Studios. After Amazon, Bill was an Executive In Residence with Maveron, LLC, an early stage, consumer-only venture capital firm. Bill later served as the Chief Operating Officer of OfferUp, the largest mobile marketplace for local buyers and sellers in the US. Today Bill is co-founder of Working Backwards LLC where he coaches executives at both large and early stage companies on how to implement the management practices developed at Amazon.Colin Bryar joined Amazon in 1998 – four years after its founding – and spent the next twelve years as part of Amazon’s senior leadership team as Amazon grew from a domestic (US-only) seller of books to a global, multi-dimensional powerhouse and innovator. For two of his years at Amazon, Colin was Chief of Staff to Jeff Bezos, AKA ‘Jeff’s shadow’, during which he spent each day attending meetings, travelling with, and discussing business and life with Jeff. After Amazon, he and his family relocated to Singapore for two years where Colin served as Chief Operating Officer of e-commerce company RedMart, which was subsequently sold to Alibaba. Colin is co-founder of Working Backwards LLC where he coaches executives at both large and early stage companies on how to implement the management practices developed at Amazon.