> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.antoinebuteau.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Lessons from Andy Jassy - URL: https://www.antoinebuteau.com/lessons-from-andy-jassy/ - Published: 2025-10-13T17:44:14.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-18T12:27:59.000Z - Description: Andy Jassy, Amazon’s CEO and a driving force behind AWS, grounds leadership in customer obsession, long-term thinking, and relentless innovation. His approach combines authenticity and continuous learning with empowered teams, high standards, open debate, and ownership. - Author: Antoine Buteau - Tags: Profile, Operations, Business Leaders & Executives Profiles Andy Jassy, the CEO of Amazon and the driving force behind the creation of Amazon Web Services (AWS), has cultivated a leadership style deeply rooted in customer obsession, long-term thinking, and a culture of relentless innovation. Following in the footsteps of a visionary founder, Jassy has carved out his own authentic approach to leadership while championing and evolving the core principles that define Amazon's success. ![Infographic for "Lessons from Andy Jassy".](https://www.antoinebuteau.com/content/images/2026/07/lessons-from-andy-jassy-optimized.webp) ## On Leadership and Management Style Jassy's leadership is characterized by a commitment to authenticity, continuous learning, and upholding Amazon's iconic Leadership Principles. He emphasizes empowering teams, maintaining high standards, and fostering a culture of open debate and ownership. **1.** "You can learn from whoever you've worked with in the past, but you can't be that person. You've got to be who you are."\[[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **2.** "The second you're not learning is the second you're starting to unwind."\[[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **3.** On earning trust: “What we mean is being honest, authentic, straightforward, listening intently but challenging respectfully if you disagree, and then delivering what you said you would.”\[[2](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **4.** "I'm a big believer in hiring and developing leaders who are smarter than you and can help take the company to the next level."\[[3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **5.** "The best leaders are those who are humble, who listen to feedback, and who are always looking for ways to improve."\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **6.** On transitioning to a larger leadership role: “You have to massively delegate to be successful. When you have 25 businesses across the company, you can't be in the weekly rhythms of each business."\[[5](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **7.** "I'm still working on it... The Leadership Principles are something you have to constantly work at. When they're applied well, they're powerful.”\[[2](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\]\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **8.** On decision-making: "Great owners are always asking themselves, what would I do if this were my personal money?"\[[7](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **9.** "Leaders have relentlessly high standards — many people may think these standards are unreasonably high."\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **10.** Regarding the "Have Backbone; Disagree and Commit" principle: "We're not trying to compromise with one another to make each other feel better or to get along. We are trying to get to truth for what matters to customers."\[[7](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **11.** "Leaders develop leaders and take seriously their role in coaching others."\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **12.** When stepping into a new role, Jassy advises to "have humility and respect for what you don't know, but trust your gut."\[[5](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **13.** He acknowledges that when you become the ultimate leader, "every single relationship reset."\[[5](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **14.** "Leaders create more than they consume and always leave things better than how they found them.”\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **15.** "If you own something and it's not going well, be self-critical, and fix it."\[[2](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] ## On Strategy and Execution Jassy’s strategic approach is marked by a long-term perspective, a willingness to make bold bets, and a focus on operational excellence and speed. **16.** "If you're going to invest in something over a long period of time, that you believe is important and can change the company, you have to be strategically patient and tactically impatient."\[[8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **17.** "At Amazon, we are very careful about what big strategic bets we place, but the ones we make, we keep iterating until we find something that we think has resonance with customers."\[[9](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **18.** "Speed is not preordained; speed is a choice. You can make this choice, and you've got to set up a culture that has urgency and actually wants to experiment."\[[10](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **19.** On self-disruption: "You are much better off cannibalizing yourself...than you are howling at the wind or wishing it away or trying to put up blockers."\[[8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **20.** "I believe in having a relentless focus on execution and delivering results."\[[3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **21.** "Thinking small is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Leaders create and communicate a bold direction that inspires results."\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **22.** He distinguishes between "one-way door" (consequential and hard to reverse) and "two-way door" (reversible) decisions, urging that the latter be made quickly at the team level.\[[7](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **23.** "Our goal is to be the infrastructure technology platform underneath all of these enterprises in their transformation strategies."\[[11](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **24.** On the pace of business: "You can't wait for things to be perfect; it's better to go sooner rather than later."\[[12](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **25.** When entering a new market: "Simply because Amazon decides to pursue a market segment doesn't mean the customers are going to spend their money there, and so it means that we have to do an amazing job."\[[8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **26.** "I'm a big proponent of focusing on the long-term and really being tenacious about trying to achieve your goals, whatever they are."\[[3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **27.** "We don't wait for opportunities, we create them."\[[12](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **28.** AWS's goal is not to optimize for a specific quarter, but to establish lasting customer relationships and a business that "outlasts all of us."\[[13](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] ## On Innovation and Technology Having built AWS from the ground up, Jassy is a firm believer in constant invention, experimentation, and leveraging technology to redefine customer experiences. **29.** "Invention requires two things: One, the ability to try a lot of experiments, and two, not having to live with the collateral damage of failed experiments."\[[8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **30.** "I think it's important to have a strong culture of innovation, and to be willing to experiment and take risks."\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **31.** On the pace of change: "If you're not constantly inventing and reinventing...it's actually difficult to sustain being successful."\[[14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **32.** "I believe that if you don't take risks, you can't really grow and you can't really create something new."\[[3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **33.** On generative AI: "Every single customer experience we know of is going to be reinvented with generative AI."\[[15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **34.** "There is no compression algorithm for experience."\[[8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **35.** "As we do new things, we accept that we may be misunderstood for long periods of time."\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\]\[[14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **36.** "Leaders expect and require innovation and invention from their teams and always find ways to simplify."\[[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **37.** "The democratisation of technology has fundamentally changed the way businesses operate.”\[[12](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **38.** "I think every single SAS company and application that we know of will be reinvented with what's available in the cloud."\[[15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **39.** He believes every company is becoming a technology company.\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **40.** The cloud has "flipped the business and startup model on its head," by dramatically lowering the cost of experimentation.\[[11](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] ## On Customer Obsession Jassy is a true disciple of Amazon's "Customer Obsession" principle, viewing it as the ultimate driver of long-term success. **41.** "The most important thing you can do is focus obsessively on the customer."\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **42.** "Our approach has always been to listen to our customers, then develop solutions that meet their needs."\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **43.** "Customers are always beautifully, wonderfully dissatisfied, even when they report being happy and business is great.”\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **44.** On helping customers save money: "We have a support team that is spending a very large amount of its time trying to help customers optimize what they have on us."\[[13](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **45.** "If you really listen to your customers, they will tell you what they want.”\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **46.** He champions "working backwards" from the customer's needs to drive innovation.\[[10](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **47.** "We believe that customers should have the freedom to use any language and any platform that they want.”\[[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **48.** Jassy's focus remains on delivering value to customers as the key to sustained success, rather than getting distracted by internal goals or competitors.\[[16](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **49.** "It doesn't matter if it was your idea or not. We're all trying to get to the best possible answer for customers, whoever's idea it is."\[[7](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] **50.** The company's mission is to be "Earth's most customer-centric company," a principle Jassy continues to uphold.\[[10](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)\] Sources 1. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 2. [AboutAmazon: Andy Jassy Letter to Shareholders](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com) 3. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 4. [YouTube: AWS re:Invent Keynote with Andy Jassy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 5. [AboutAmazon: Andy Jassy Letter to Shareholders](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com) 6. [YouTube: Harvard i-lab Intrapreneurship & Hatching AWS with Andy Jassy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 7. [AboutAmazon: Andy Jassy Letter to Shareholders](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com) 8. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 9. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 10. [AboutAmazon: Andy Jassy Letter to Shareholders](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com) 11. [YouTube: Harvard i-lab Intrapreneurship & Hatching AWS with Andy Jassy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlcU-8QE870&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 12. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 13. [YouTube: AWS re:Invent Keynote with Andy Jassy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ3k7Fd6%5FeU&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 14. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 15. [YouTube: Amazon CEO on Leadership, Innovation and Customer Obsession](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlYmhZBuAc&ref=antoinebuteau.com) 16. [AboutAmazon: Andy Jassy Letter to Shareholders](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-2022-letter-to-shareholders?ref=antoinebuteau.com)