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Case Code: HROB187
Case Length: 21 Pages 
Period: 1994-2016     
Pub Date: 2017
Teaching Note: Available
Price:Rs.400
Organization : Amazon.com
Industry : E-Commerce
Countries : US 
Themes: -  
Case Studies  
Business Strategy
Marketing
Finance
Human Resource Management
IT and Systems
Operations
Economics
Leadership & Entrepreneurship

Amazon's Workplace Culture

 

ABSTRACT

 
The case discusses about the workplace culture of Amazon.com Inc. (Amazon), the US based e-commerce giant. On August 16, 2015, the New York Times newspaper kicked off a controversy with a detailed article that described Amazon’s workplace as ‘bruising’. According to the article also criticized, Jeffery Bezos (Jeff), the founder & CEO of Amazon, for pushing the employees so hard that the work environment had become toxic. As per the allegations, the company forced its employees to work ignoring their family & other personal issues. The article also highlighted how the stringent and unfair evaluation processes and secret feedback system prevalent in the company had made the employees emotionally and physically ill. While Jeff denied the allegations, many existing and former employees of Amazon came forward to confirm and detail several incidents similar to those documented in the article... .
 
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Issues

The case is structured to achieve the following teaching objectives:
  • Analyze the culture of and its impact on a company.
  • Infer the outcomes of employee satisfaction and dissatisfaction in a company.
  • Relate organizational commitment with a firm’s performance.
Contents
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND NOTE
CUSTOMER-CENTRIC APPROACH
AMAZON’S HR PRACTICES
PRACTICES TO EXCEL OR EXPLOIT?
THE PRACTICES CONTINUE
MORE ALLEGATIONS POUR IN…
…LEADING TO A DEBATE
JEFF’S DEFENSE
COMBAT POLICIES
FUTURE SPECULATIONS
EXHIBITS

Keywords

Amazon,Organizational Culture,Criticism ,Practices over the years,Employees’ reactions,Combat Policies,Future speculations,Toxic Culture,Employee evaluation,Feedback system,Commitment,Productivity,Work environment

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