Why I left AWS
IMPORTANT: If you’re looking for a rant against AWS, you won’t find it here.
It’s interesting how we're shaped to believe we shouldn’t let any opportunity pass us by. Partially, I agree with that mindset, but there’s a significant "BUT", I prefer to prioritize things beyond prestige or money. Many friends called me crazy for leaving an amazing company like AWS after such a short time. Let me explain why I made that decision and what truly matters to me.
A Little About Me
To better understand my perspective, let me tell you a bit about myself. Don't worry, I won’t list my career history or mention all my past colleagues. Instead, I'll focus on my personality.
I’m not your typical technical professional. I constantly challenge the status quo, often becoming the "annoying" person asking "why?" at every step. I'm the guy who knows nothing about Marvel or Star Wars, who thrives on dynamism, perhaps excessively at times, and who complains about rigid processes or their absence. I learn by doing, and above all, prioritize my emotional well-being.
With that context, let me share how my nearly three-month journey at AWS unfolded, and perhaps you’ll understand why I left.
The Hiring Process
The hiring process at AWS can be challenging if you don’t carefully follow the extensive resources provided at each stage. If you fail, it's likely because you didn’t put in the necessary effort or lacked relevant experience. However, if you follow the recruiter’s guidance and prepare adequately, getting into AWS is quite manageable.
Credit where it's due, the hiring was efficient, taking about a month from interviews to receiving an offer, despite coinciding with AWS re:Invent. Kudos to them on that front.
However, things got interesting after accepting the offer. The onboarding process ("Embark") involved substantial paperwork and definitions, some of which felt unnecessarily complex and unclear. Yet, managing onboarding at scale with 1.5 million employees can't be easy, so I can’t fault them entirely.
Onboarding Experience
The "fun" began on my first day, seated in front of a 16-inch MacBook Pro M1, starting the onboarding. I spent 116 hours watching videos about processes, tools, AWS technical content (valuable, undoubtedly), and company culture. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to offend anyone, but those videos drained my soul. Sitting passively without the opportunity to shadow peers, understand business metrics, or even grasp how my skills added value to the team was deeply frustrating, especially as I was eager to dive right in.
Certain mandatory processes made me feel miserable, yet there was no alternative. Are these processes inherently wrong? No. Managing people at such scale isn't simple, and I don't have all the answers. However, one crucial point I'd like to emphasize is: Culture is experienced through daily interactions, not through videos.
The moment I realized AWS wasn't the right fit FOR ME, and yes, the caps are intentional, as this is a personal reflection, occurred during an "Awesome Builder" event. While preparing an AWS value proposition presentation, I struggled in dry runs and my initial event. As a storyteller, I naturally wanted to infuse my personal style into the presentation. Unfortunately, I was discouraged from incorporating my past experiences. I was explicitly told that AWS has a unique approach, implying my prior expertise was irrelevant. While I understand the need for consistency, completely disregarding my 20 years of cloud services experience felt dismissive, after all, I had been selling cloud services long before many current employees started working.
What I Learned
My primary takeaway from this experience is clear: large corporations aren’t for me. No matter how agile or innovative they appear, big companies don’t align with my working style or personality.
What suits me best? The messy, chaotic world of startups, where scopes change weekly, roles overlap, and wearing multiple hats, solutions architect, post-sales engineer, technical support, is the norm. I joke about this dynamic regularly in my newsletter, Architect This! but honestly, I thrive in it.
I prefer companies where onboarding involves direct interaction with customers, not recklessly, of course, but with genuine engagement. Organizations where flexibility reigns, where you know your colleagues personally because there aren’t more than 100 of them, and you've collaborated with most. Here, culture isn’t taught via videos or quizzes about escalating issues to managers, it’s something you breathe and live daily.
That’s why I left AWS. Perhaps for you, AWS is the perfect place, and sincerely, I hope it will be. But for someone like me, constantly chasing novelty, embracing uncertainty, making bold moves, traveling 14 hours just to explore new opportunities and innovations, stability or retiring comfortably in a big company simply isn’t appealing. Doing things right matters, but for me, a conventional path isn’t the perk I’m after.
How the Future Looks
I'm still figuring it out—I won’t pretend otherwise. I'm currently exploring opportunities in the startup world, investing time in ExyData, and diving deep into 3D printing. I'm optimistic something good will come along, not because I'm overly confident, but because I'm continually learning, exploring, and genuinely enjoying life.
Of course, I'm open to Sales Engineering or Solution Architecture roles at fully remote companies. If you're looking for a seasoned professional in these areas with strong business acumen, let’s talk.