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This case and the numbers published in this case are not representative of any Amazon businesses

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any public or media consumption.

Human Resources – Case Study 2

About the Team

The Finance Analytics team based out of Bangalore commenced in 2011 and has grown steadily

since then. This team is working directly with business teams based out of multiple locations in

the world and provides accounting and analytical support to the Finance Operations and Central

Accounting teams. They ensure that the profit and loss and balance sheet statements are

accurate for fixed assets, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, bank accounts and

intercompany accounts. The team’s  primary role is to ensure that the process controls and

accounting controls are working in the intended way. The Bangalore team owns several key

aspects of accounting and analytical support and is responsible for enhancing the control

environment and driving quality initiatives.

Background

The growth of this team in the last two years and subsequent increase in complexity of

projects/work being undertaken has led to pertinent need to hire qualified finance professionals.

The underlying assumption for this scenario is that a qualified accounting professional is trained

to challenge the existing practice and conduct rigorous audit in order to improve the current

structures and processes. They don’t need a lot of handholding; they thrive on ambiguity,

building detail on the basis of even the most limited information.

(Note: If Level X = 1, then Level Y = Level X + 1) 

In the external market, the top ranked qualified finance professionals are mapped to specialized

roles like Treasury, Taxation etc. which are typically Level Y+ jobs at Amazon. Independent

decision making, ability to logically represent any data to senior leadership and a thorough

understanding on their area of work are essential at Level Y. In the Finance Analytics Team in

Bangalore, at Level Y, such fresh qualified finance professionals are faring well in the technical

competencies. However, they fail to meet the Amazon hiring bar w.r.t other critical

competencies defined above. Hiring them at Level Y would imply that we as an organization are

in tune with Industry practices, but we could potentially lower the existing Level Y bar in the

team and have an added risk of failure to deliver results.

In 2013, 14% of the total population at Level X comprised of qualified finance professionals who

are not rank holders, and only 25% of this subset has shown the potential to move up to Level Y

in less than a year’s time. Going by the Amazon Hiring philosophy, such candidates are fit to be

hired at Level X and not Level Y. Given defined training interventions, such candidates could

 

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This case and the numbers published in this case are not representative of any Amazon businesses

within India or in any other region where Amazon has offices or operations and should not be used for

any public or media consumption.

prove to be on the fast track route for promotion and could help in boosting the internal

pipeline for Level Y positions. However, in the current population at Level X, there is a large

population of other finance specialists, and creating a specialized program catering only to

specific qualifications could possibly lead to creating a culture of haves and have not’s .

The team is currently experiencing heavy growth and is taking up new and high complexity

projects and this year their focus is towards automating most of the processes and improving

the quality of reconciliations performed. Given the scope of work defined for the team this year,

qualified finance professionals would be able to add a lot of value with their advanced technical

skills and ability to improve the quality of the final output and bring about process

improvements.

Case Questions:

  Based on the above mentioned facts, do you feel that there is a need to hire qualified

finance professionals in this team? If yes, what would be the appropriate levelling (Level

X or Level Y) for them. Also design a corresponding development and retention plan for

them.

  What are the challenges you foresee in implementing your plan? Also, call out the

possible risks and benefits of your plan.