Jeff Bezos to step down as Amazon CEO in Q3, to take on role of Exec Chair

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos will be stepping down as CEO in the third quarter of 2021. He will be replaced by Andy Jassy, current CEO of Amazon Web Services. Bezos will transition to, what is being said an even more powerful role of Executive Chairman at Amazon in Q3. By stepping down as CEO, Bezos will be moving away from the day-to-day operations of the e-commerce behemoth.

It was in 1994 that Bezos had founded Amazon as an online bookstore. Amazon announced an increase in its operating income to $6.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared to operating income of $3.9 billion in Q4 of 2019. Net income increased to $7.2 billion in Q4 of 2020, or $14.09 per diluted share, compared with net income of $3.3 billion, or $6.47 per diluted share, in Q4 of 2019.

Net sales was up 44% to $125.6 billion in the fourth quarter, compared to $87.4 billion in fourth quarter of 2019. Excluding the $1.7 billion favourable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales increased 42% compared to Q4 of 2019.

In an email to Amazon’s employees, Bezos said, “I’m excited to announce that this Q3 I’ll transition to Executive Chair of the Amazon Board...In the Exec Chair role, I intend to focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives.”

He further said, “As Exec Chair, I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and my other passions.”

Following is the email sent by Jeff Bezos to Amazon’s employees announcing his transition and also of Andy Jassy taking on the role of CEO after him...

Fellow Amazonians:

I’m excited to announce that this Q3 I’ll transition to Executive Chair of the Amazon Board and Andy Jassy will become CEO. 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.

This journey began some 27 years ago. Amazon was only an idea, and it had no name. The question I was asked most frequently at that time was, “What’s the internet?” Blessedly, I haven’t had to explain that in a long while.

Today, we employ 1.3 million talented, dedicated people, serve hundreds of millions of customers and businesses, and are widely recognized as one of the most successful companies in the world.

How did that happen? Invention. Invention is the root of our success. We’ve done crazy things together, and then made them normal. We pioneered customer reviews, 1-Click, personalized recommendations, Prime’s insanely-fast shipping, Just Walk Out shopping, the Climate Pledge, Kindle, Alexa, marketplace, infrastructure cloud computing, Career Choice, and much more. If you get it right, a few years after a surprising invention, the new thing has become normal. People yawn. And that yawn is the greatest compliment an inventor can receive.

I don’t know of another company with an invention track record as good as Amazon’s, and I believe we are at our most inventive right now. I hope you are as proud of our inventiveness as I am. I think you should be.

As Amazon became large, we decided to use our scale and scope to lead on important social issues. Two high-impact examples: our $15 minimum wage and the Climate Pledge. In both cases, we staked out leadership positions and then asked others to come along with us. In both cases, it’s working. Other large companies are coming our way. I hope you’re proud of that as well.

I find my work meaningful and fun. I get to work with the smartest, most talented, most ingenious teammates. When times have been good, you’ve been humble. When times have been tough, you’ve been strong and supportive, and we’ve made each other laugh. It is a joy to work on this team.

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. As Exec Chair I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and my other passions. I’ve never had more energy, and this isn’t about retiring. I’m super passionate about the impact I think these organizations can have.

Amazon couldn’t be better positioned for the future. We are firing on all cylinders, just as the world needs us to. We have things in the pipeline that will continue to astonish. We serve individuals and enterprises, and we’ve pioneered two complete industries and a whole new class of devices. We are leaders in areas as varied as machine learning and logistics, and if an Amazonian’s idea requires yet another new institutional skill, we’re flexible enough and patient enough to learn it.

Keep inventing, and don’t despair when at first the idea looks crazy. Remember to wander. Let curiosity be your compass. It remains Day 1.

Jeff