Mr. Amit Agarwal, Global Senior Vice President and Country Head of Amazon India, is the man behind the staggering rise of the company surpassing all the internal milestones in the Indian e-commerce market. Known for his customer obsession and outstanding business development skills, he envisages Amazon to be the most customer-centric company by transforming the online business trend in India. It is surprising to know that the man who always aspired to become a teacher and accidentally landed up in the internet business world is spearheading the expansion of the world's largest online retailer in India's booming e-commerce industry.
"I am a runner. When you run (a marathon), you don't check after 10m and see if you're ahead.
If you do, then it's going to be a very long race for you because you might trip."
Mr. Amit Agarwal obtained his B.Tech. degree in Computer Science in 1995 from IIT Kanpur and further went on to complete his master's in the same discipline from Stanford University in 1997. Following it, he joined Cambridge Technology Partners in Silicon Valley only to leave it in few months for Informatica. However, he was not satisfied working over there and decided to join Amazon when the company approached him a few times.
He began his stint at Amazon in February 1999 in Seattle. It is interesting to know that on being asked what made him join Amazon, he stated that it wasn't something he had in his mind ever and it is destiny that brought him on board. His Stanford's batchmate prodded him to join the e-commerce industry and his love and passion for mountain climbing made his decision easier, said Mr. Agarwal in one of his interviews.
At the time he joined Amazon, the company was only into bookselling and was interested in expanding its operations. Mr. Agarwal played a pivotal role in accomplishing the company's vision and mission. He started working at Amazon as a software developer and steadily rose to the top ranks becoming one of the youngest team members of the Senior Leadership Team (S-Team) of chief executive officer and president Jeff Bezos. He has always remained an important part of almost every single large bet made by the retailer that spans Amazon's core online marketplace business, Amazon Web Services (AWS). In 2004, he moved to India to head the AWS team as a managing director and oversaw the company's expansion in the country. In 2007, he returned to Seattle and became a part of Bezos's much-coveted team of technical advisers prominently known as the Shadow Team. He served as a technical adviser for three years and then was promoted to be a VP International Expansion in 2009 and Vice President and Country Head, Amazon India in 2013.
Owing to his excellent track record and relentless endeavors to expand Amazon's business in India, the company elevated him to the position of a global senior vice president in March 2017. However, he will continue to spearhead the company's operations in India as the Country Head. Under Mr. Agarwal's leadership, Amazon has grown in leaps and bounds over the past few years and is focused on bringing global innovations to India. Mr. Jeff Bezos has recently announced to invest $3 billion more to strengthen the company's presence in the Indian e-commerce market.
Mr. Agarwal is the recipient of the prestigious IITK Distinguished Alumnus Award 2018.
