Jeff Bezos, the 57-year-old, founded Amazon in back 1994. He had ever since transformed the one-a- upon a time online bookstore into a global retailer with coming up with different categories from gadgets to groceries to streaming. Under his commendable leadership, Amazon surpassed a $1 trillion market in January 2020 which is today it’s now worth more than $1.6 trillion.
The company kept its succession plans under the table; However, there were speculations that either Andy Jassy or Jeff Wilke, would be Bezos’ eventual successor. In August Amazon announced Wilke will retire in 2021 making the 53-year-old Andy Jassy become CEO in the third quarter.
Andy Jassy who joined Amazon in 1997 and has led it’s Web Services cloud team since its inception.
“I’m excited to announce that this Q3 I’ll transition to Executive Chair of the Amazon Board and Andy Jassy will become CEO,” Bezos said in a letter to employees. “In the Exec Chair role, I intend to focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives. Andy is well known inside the company and has been at Amazon almost as long as I have. He will be an outstanding leader, and he has my full confidence.”
The successor’s news became public alongside an earnings report in which Amazon posted its first $100 billion quarter. AWS, under Jassy, reported 28% revenue growth for the fourth quarter. About 52% of Amazon’s operating income was attributed to AWS as of October 2020.
Bezos informed that he will stay engaged in important Amazon projects. After stepping down he will also have more time to focus on his Blue Origin spaceship company, the Bezos Earth Fund, The Washington Post and the Amazon Day 1 Fund.
Bezos in his internal announcement said, “As much as I still tap dance into the office, I’m excited about this transition,” “Millions of customers depend on us for our services, and more than a million employees depend on us for their livelihoods. Being the CEO of Amazon is a deep responsibility, and it’s consuming. When you have a responsibility like that, it’s hard to put attention on anything else.”
