AWS: Workplace innovation starts with dissatisfied employees
- Claire Lee
How should organisations ensure innovation? Hire employees who are restless and dissatisfied because unless dissatisfaction exists, there will be no desire to innovate, according to Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Speaking with Fortune magazine, Adam Selipsky, CEO of AWS, explained, “We find people who want to be on a mission, who are restless and dissatisfied with what they see around them, who are curious about how the world works and how it can work.”
Once these workers are hired, AWS then tries to foster an environment without constraints, as he highlighted, “We take constraints out of their way and try to remove as many dependencies as we can from them, so they’re free in a single-minded way to focus on their mission.”
Selipsky also advised younger employees to hone their skills, find their passion and surround themselves with the right people, while ensuring that they have the “right reputation”.
READ: Amazon’s WFH strategy lets employees stay performance-focused
Like other tech firms, Amazon, AWS’ parent company, announced in November that it is planning to retrench about 10,000 employees from the devices organisation, retail division, and human resources, a job-cutting exercise that is expected to continue into 2023.
