Think Like Amazon: 50 1/2 Ideas to Become a Digital Leader

John Rossman was an executive at Amazon, where he launched and scaled the Marketplace business, which now accounts for more than 50 percent of all units sold at Amazon.com. He also led the enterprise services business, with responsibilities for Target.com, NBA.com, Toys R Us, and other top brands. He now heads Rossman Partners, a niche business advisory firm that helps clients succeed and thrive in the digital era. Rossman has worked with The Gates Foundation, Microsoft, Nordstrom, Target, Walmart, and many others. He is highly sought after for expert commentary regarding Amazon by global news media, such as the New York Times, CNBC, and Bloomberg, among others.

INTRODUCTION: WHAT WOULD JEFF DO?

Part I
Culture

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1 RESET YOUR CLOCKS:
Your Journey Will Not Be Short or a Straight Line
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2 MERCENARY OR MISSION DRIVEN?
Be Strategic and Honest in Your Obsession,
and Then Obsess to Win

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3 MOVE FORWARD TO GET BACK TO DAY 1:
Change the Culture of the Status Quo

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4 OBSESSED IS DIFFERENT:
Create Customer Obsession in Your Business

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5 DON’T GO ALONG TO GET ALONG:
The Risk Social Cohesion Poses to Achieving Hard Results

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6 DELIVER RESULTS:
Own Your Dependencies to Overcome and Succeed

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7 OWNERSHIP FOR EVERYONE:
Compensation Strategy to Drive Enterprise Optimization

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8 AVOID COUNTRY CLUBS:
Stay Hungry Even When You’re Successful

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9 MAKE THE ELEPHANT DANCE:
Portfolio Strategy and Governance for Innovation

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10 YOU ARE THE CHIEF PRODUCT OFFICER:
The New Management Science of Being a Builder

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11 ARE YOU WILLING TO
BE MISUNDERSTOOD?
Lessons from Amazon’s Biggest Innovations

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12 GET TO YES:
Finance, Tax, Legal, and HR Teams That Matter

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13 BLOW UP THE ORG CHART:
Don’t Let Your Organizational Structure and
Titles Get in the Way

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14 GAMES FOR INNOVATION:
Spur Invention in Fun Ways

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15 THE DOOR DESK:
Forcing Innovation Through Frugality

Part II
Strategy

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16 INTRODUCTION TO
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE:
Being Digital

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17 EXPERIMENT, FAIL, RINSE, REPEAT:
Plan and Operate Your Experiments for Digital Success

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18 SO YOU WANT TO BE A PLATFORM?
Platform Strategy for the Rest of Us

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19 YES, YOU ARE A
TECHNOLOGY COMPANY:
Decentralize Your Way to Digital Greatness

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20 PIZZA FOR ALL!
The Magic of Small Autonomous Teams

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21 NEVER SAY NEVER:
Don’t Let Past Positions Create a Trap

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22 RELENTLESS.COM:
Next-Generation Operational Excellence

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23 OPW:
The Strategy of Other People’s Work

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24 THE MAGIC OF FORCING FUNCTIONS:
Get These Right, and Your Teams Will Take Off

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25 WHAT’S YOUR FLYWHEEL?
Systems Thinking in Strategy Development

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26 WHY IS THIS SO HARD?
Innovate by Reducing Friction

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27 GRANTING CUSTOMERS
SUPERPOWERS:
Dreamy Businesses and Durable Needs

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28 THINK DIFFERENTLY:
Improve Your Questions for Disruption

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29 LAUNCH AND LEARN:
Business Expansion the Amazon Way

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30 DON’T GIVE AWAY THE
OPERATING SYSTEM:
Partners, Vendors, and Strategy

Part III
Business and Technology

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31 LIES, DAMN LIES, AND METRICS:
Use Metrics to Build a Culture of Accountability
and Customer Obsession

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32 PROCESS VERSUS BUREAUCRACY:
Create Processes That Scale

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33 DO THE MATH:
The Path to Automation and AI Starts with Formulas

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34 CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE MATTERS:
Design and Measure the Customer Experience to Win
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35 WHAT’S YOUR JUST
WALK OUT TECHNOLOGY?
Use the Internet of Things to Reinvent
Customer Experiences

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36 INFORMATION SECURITY MUST DIE:
Making Security Everyone’s Job

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37 OP1:
The Painstaking Process of Planning

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38 STRATEGIC HEADCOUNT PLANNING:
Scaling and Innovating Through People Allocation

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39 ARCHITECTURE IS THE BUSINESS STRATEGY:
Win Through Technology and Architecture

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40 THE QUESTIONS YOU ASK:
Ask Your CIO These Questions—for Everyone’s Benefit

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41 THE END OF ARTIFICIAL
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE:
Prepare for a Future of Machine Learning

Part IV
Approach and Execution

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42 ONE-WAY OR TWO-WAY DOOR?
Make Better and Faster Decisions

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43 RAISE THE BAR:
Avoid the Biggest Hiring Mistakes

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44 A NARRATIVE ABOUT NARRATIVES:
Ditch the PowerPoint and Gain Clarity

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45 THE FUTURE PRESS RELEASE:
Define the Future and Get Teams on Board

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46 FAQS:
Answer Others’ Questions for Your Benefit

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47 WRITE THE USER MANUAL:
Start with the Customer and Work Backward

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48 YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT:
Create Change Via the Executive Team Reading List

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49 FINANCE FOR FOOLS:
Free Cash Flow, Accounting, and Change

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50 THE LAST WORD ON BECOMING DIGITAL:
Trust

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50 PRINCIPLES ARE NOT A POSTER:
The Pursuit of Speed, Agility, and Digital Leadership
 
NOTES

INDEX