“Amazon is a unique place where we can learn almost infinitely.”

For Anne-Marie, her customers are two different sets of people. The first set is the end customer and the second her internal business clients. To stay focused on Amazon’s end customers, she listens, listens, listens. That includes real stories and anecdotes from friends, family members, and people she meets outside of work.

“Nearly everything you hear about Amazon is either a good story to be proud of, an opportunity to better serve our customers, or a way to break perceptions. We must be open to what people experience or think about Amazon. We all strive to delight our customers and make their lives easier.”

With her internal clients, she tries to listen to what’s happening in the business as much as possible. “We don’t manage processes, we manage people and our role in HR is to anticipate the people impact of business decisions as much as possible.”

Anne-Marie says she is happiest when she sees her team members being successful using their own ‘super powers’. “A ‘super power’ is something meaningful to me as an HR professional. Instead of insisting on what people need to develop, I would rather build on every individual strengths to create a successful team. If I use what people are best at, they are more engaged and they make a difference. I also use their skills in areas I know they are better at than me. Together, we do a better job for customers.”

Anne-Marie also works hard to foster an inclusive culture, where each team brings diverse perspectives to solving problems for customers. “What matters more than diversity is inclusiveness. Diversity is the sum of different backgrounds, social origins, males, females and so on. Inclusiveness is how you combine diversity to bring the best outcomes.”

She’s often asked for tips on how young women should start their career, and she recommends that they be vocal: About their successes, their talents, their career expectations and accept some things are not always perfect.

“If I had to give a piece of advice to new joiners, whether they are male or female, it would be to learn and be curious. Amazon is a great opportunity to evolve in a dynamic environment, surrounded by smart people where you can learn, experiment, and grow.”

“I really encourage new joiners to feed their appetite to learn by getting away from their desks and by networking. Amazon is a unique place where we can learn almost infinitely. Take advantage of it.”