AWS CEO Matt Garman discusses how he applies Jeff Bezos’s decision-making model to enhance speed and efficiency at Amazon

Recently, Matt Garman, the CEO of AWS, chatted about this on The Verge’s “Decoder” podcast. He explained that part of his job is to make those one-way door decisions. Basically, these are the choices that can’t be reversed easily. He thinks this framework is super helpful for keeping things moving quickly.
Garman pointed out that a common mistake companies make is using a one-size-fits-all approach. This can slow things down because they don’t know when to escalate decisions. Ideally, two-way door decisions don’t need much oversight, which allows teams to act fast.
He believes in empowering the teams who know their products best to make those calls. Garman said he’s not always the expert on every topic at AWS, so he makes it a point to listen to the people who are.
He also likes to ask questions. Garman thinks his outsider perspective helps connect the dots across different areas of the business. It’s all about making sure everyone is on the same page and asking the right questions.
Ultimately, Garman’s role is to keep things moving. If there’s a tie in decision-making, he steps in to break it. He knows that speed is crucial, and he doesn’t want to get stuck in endless discussions. Sometimes, you just have to make a call and keep things rolling.