20 Best AWS Leadership Principles Interview Tips with Practice Questions and Answers

This post provides valuable Amazon Web Services (AWS) leadership principles interview tips, as well as carefully selected interview practice questions and answers, to help increase your chances of getting through the AWS leadership principles interview process successfully.

Amazon Web Services is established and managed by Amazon.

The Company often conducts an average of 4 to 6 interviews per year to recruit workers that will man the Web services part of their organization.

20 Best AWS Leadership Principles Interview Tips

Are you taking the Amazon Web Services leadership principles interview? If you are, then here are helpful tips for success in it:

1. Study Amazon’s leadership principles

You must know what Amazon leadership principles are so you can answer whatever questions you are asked correctly.

2. Do your research about the company thoroughly

You must know all that AWS is about. You should also know all about Amazon, have all the information at your fingertips.

3. Your career profile

You must be ready enough to highlight your accomplishments. You may not share all that you have accomplished, but just be ready.

4. Dress well

One of the sections of your interview would involve a physical meeting.

You should not look shabby while coming for the interview, dressing well gives you an edge.

5. Communicate clearly

If your answers to questions are all mumbled up, then you will not be taken seriously, you must be sure to communicate clearly.

6. Use CAR (Challenge, Action, Result)

When answering questions, make sure you point out what the challenge was, the action you took to salvage the situation and what the result was.

7. Your strengths

Make sure the answers you give here are related to the position in question, don’t talk about unrelated events.

8. Have clear intentions

Be sure what you want is clear in your mind, think through it carefully.

9. Sell yourself

What is your worth? What can you offer? Let the interviewers understand what they stand to gain by employing you.

10. Why do you want to work for Amazon

You must know why you want this, do not be caught off guard because most times, they want to know why them in the first place.

11. Know Amazon’s culture

You must totally understand what the culture of the place is.

12. Be confident

There’s a difference between confidence and overconfidence. Know which is which and choose to be confident.

13. You may not know the answer to everything

This is fine, but make sure you attempt all the questions you are asked and yet, don’t be arrogant about it.

14. What are the FAQs

It is important to know the frequently asked questions; you could be asked the same.

15. Talk about your failures too

When you do so, also highlight the measures you took to overcome them. This shows that you may have flaws but you can always handle the task.

16. Tell stories

Stories always sell, but keep it short and simple.

17. Tie your answer to your experience

This shows the level of exposure you have.

18. Be neutral

Do not say negative things about those in your former place of work; paint no one in a bad light.

19. Be enthusiastic

Yes, it is an official role, but try as much as possible to show your feelings, especially positive ones.

20. As much as you prepare for behavioral questions, also prepare for competence based questions

Point to specific instances where issues like risk taking, innovation, problem solving, and managing workflow, were all handled properly.

20 Top AWS Leadership Principles Interview Practice Question and Answers

Here are our carefully selected practice questions and answers to help you achieve success in your AWS leadership principles interview:

1. Have you ever made an urgent decision that had an impact on the organization?

Yes, a client once demanded for a change in the specifications of a project which would really have a significant impact on the ability of the team to complete the project on time; I decided to agree to the changes in the project specifications because of the core values of our company.

2. Have you ever given a simple solution to a complex problem? Tell me about it please

Sure I have. The marketing expense of our company was once outrageous because it was going directly on Facebook and other social media adverts.

After few investigations, it was then noticed that the team was not using Facebook’s tracking pixels.

I informed them about it and from that day on, the organization was able to measure accurately the marketing return on investment.

3. Have you ever analyzed information carefully to overcome a challenging project? If yes, How?

Yes I have. I was once given a business analysis to run, I knew that a single mistake may bring our company to bankruptcy, so I gradually checked through the business review to avoid mistakes.

4. How did you take a calculated risk in your place of work, if you have?

Once, my manager left, I was the only one in the office, suddenly, a client came in for a business deal, and according to the rules and regulations guiding our business, only the manager can seal a business deal.

I called the manager and his line was not reachable. I saw that the client had much to offer us, so I sealed the deal with him.

5. Can you complete a project or task if you had limited time or resources? How?

I will have to employ attention to doing the project to completion. I will remove any distractions and focus solely on the completion of the project.

6. Have you experienced conflict within a team?

Yes I have, one time, my colleague came in with his Champagne to work and poured it on my work space claiming it was a mistake, whereas the instruction was that no one should come into the work place with any food substance.

We exchanged words and were not in talking terms for some time although he was suspended for a few days for his misnomer. We reconciled afterwards.

7. Have you ever gone beyond what was expected of you?

Yes, most times, because of what I see in the company I work for i.e. while I am helping them grow, they are also helping me become better.

I easily give more than is expected of me.

8. Have you ever failed in doing a work? Please tell me why

I once failed to meet the needs of the clients forwarded to my group because I had a lady I was in a relationship with.

In a bid to make her happy, I failed in fulfilling that project. I learnt my lesson, went for a new relationship and set definite priorities and boundaries.

9. Have you ever faced a challenging situation at work? How did you manage it?

I had an asthmatic colleague in my work group, whenever he was around the AC must be turned off, but working in a hot place is a big deal for me.

I found it hard to cope with such hot environment, but I had to be accommodative.

10. Have you disagreed with a work colleague or a manager?

I once had a disagreement with my colleague in my place of work.

11. Have you ever shown one of Amazon’s Leadership Principles at work?

Yes, Customer obsession is one of Amazon leadership principles I usually see myself manifest as I work.

12. Tell me about a rare decision you had to make at work?

The rarest decision I made was still about the client that came to book a business deal with my manager.

13. What most will you like being a leader with Amazon, and what will you dislike?

I wish to unleash my talents here in order to establish the goals and objectives of Amazon as well as learn and get better because I believe the nature of the company will foster growth for me.

14. Have you at any time given a bad news to a member of your team?

On a set day, 1st day of April I called my colleague and told him to do what our manager didn’t tell him to do.

If he did not do it, it would not have affected our firm in anyway. It was a prank anyway; it was April fool’s day.

15. Have you ever led a team to achieve an organization’s goal or objective?

A client once gave a change in the specifications of a project. The team initially didn’t agree to what he wanted, but I calmed everyone down and encouraged them to go ahead and do what we needed to do for the prestige of our firm.

16. Have you persuaded someone to follow your course of action?

Yes, one time, I made a promise to one of my colleagues to take him out for lunch because I wanted him to do what needed to be done.

17. How have you ever overcome a difficult challenge at work?

I had to be accommodative to an asthmatic fellow in my place of work.

18. Have you ever improved what you do so as to achieve a better outcome?

I once failed because of a relationship, so I had to set clear outlined priority in relationship and I had a better outcome.

19. Tell me about how you learned something new that was outside of your comfort zone?

I had to run on routine for a long time. I wanted to work on my health and that meant I would have to work out. The routine helped me get in shape

20. Have you made an effective decision under pressure?

I learnt early to work under pressure; I was able to make decision about a business deal in the absence of my manager.

Conclusion

The Amazon Web Services leadership principles interview is definitely not a one-size-fits-all kind of interview, but with the tips and sample questions and answers you can practice with, you will be better prepared for the interview and increase your chances of getting hired.