Amazon Leadership Principle 12: Dive Deep

Understanding the Amazon Leadership Principle Dive Deep

The leadership principle ‘Dive Deep’ is about analysis and finding the root cause of an issue. It’s about asking “why” until you reach the true answer. It is about analysis and going through all the details to find the roots. You should question what you are told and get to the bottom of things.

Balancing Research and Action

Whenever you do something, you need to do analysis/research (diving deep) and then action. If you want to work at Amazon, you need to be good at analysis but also at acting. You can’t conduct extensive research and then fail to take any action, nor can you jump to action without first conducting research and then creating a plan. You need to be good at making plans and also taking action on them.

Amazon’s View on Dive Deep

The following quote shows how Amazon thinks about the leadership principle ‘Dive Deep’:

“Leaders operate at all levels, stay connected to the details, audit frequently, and are skeptical when metrics and anecdotes differ. No task is beneath them.”

Common Challenges in Interviews

People who interview for jobs at Amazon often struggle with the principle ‘Dive Deep’ more than with any other principle, especially if they are used to looking at the bigger picture. This principle may be an easy topic for researchers or people who use details, but people who are used to ideas and strategies may need to add more details to their responses in an interview.

Diving deep is about questioning things, so interviewers will likely ask you “why” multiple times after you answer a question. They will want to get more details about your response, and you need to be able to tell them about what you did in your story instead of what other people did. They want to know specifically what actions you took and how you impacted the business and are not looking for other people’s accomplishments in your answers to their questions. It makes a difference to the interviewer if you say “I” instead of “we” in your responses.

Characteristics of People Who Dive Deep

People who dive deep will do research when problems come up, question what they are told, work to find the root cause of issues, and use details to help them solve problems.

Interview Expectations

In an interview, Amazon expects you to give a lot of details when you answer a question. They want to know why you chose the way you chose to do something and how you acted.

Example Interview Questions for Dive Deep

Tell me about an issue you recently fixed. What was its root cause?
What is your biggest failure? What do you think you could have done differently to prevent it?
Describe a time you used research and data to solve a problem.
Give me an example of a time you helped to solve a big issue in your organization. How did you discover it? What research did you do to gather information?
Describe a time when there was a problem you were trying to understand, and you had to dive deep into many layers to find out what was going on. What information/research was most helpful? How did you use it?

Key Tips for Interview Responses

When you answer questions about the principle ‘Dive Deep,’ talk about your specific accomplishments and add many details. A good story for this principle should also have action in the end and include some type of data or research.

Amazon believes that leaders should be able to dive deep and figure out what happened if a problem comes up or something does not make sense. Leaders should not only be able to do this, but they should also be excited about digging into the specifics. When answering questions in an interview, you should not only list details but also show enthusiasm about them and how you contributed to a project.

Turning Research Into Action

In interview stories, you should also demonstrate how you turned research into action. You should talk about your analysis, your actions, and the results of your actions. People sometimes forget to include results in their responses. ‘Dive Deep’ is about research and analysis, but without action, research has no point. The action does not need to be yours, but it needs to be there. You should also show that you are not afraid of going into specifics and details when you are in the type of situation that needs them.