Amazon's Structure, Culture & Behaviors: Sales Growth Analysis

This report examines Amazon's organizational structure, culture, and behaviors and their influence on the company's impressive 44% sales increase and 220% profit surge in the first quarter of 2021. It details Amazon's vertical hierarchical structure and intensive organizational culture, highlighting how these elements, combined with supportive organizational behavior, contributed to the company's success during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report further analyzes factors influencing individual employee behavior, categorizing them into biographic and learned characteristics, and emphasizing how these factors fostered productivity and ultimately drove Amazon's remarkable financial performance. The company's ability to adapt, maintain employee motivation, and leverage its organizational structure during a challenging period are key takeaways.

The Modern Workplace

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Amazon's structure, cultures and behaviours that influenced them to achieve 44% additional
sales and 220% profit in the first quarter of 2021........................................................................1
Factors that influenced individual behaviour at Amazon towards their increased sales and
profit.............................................................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
The modern workplace refers to a working area of a company in which digital tools are
used in order to support modern techniques in their working place. In modern workplace new
and modern technologies are used in the company in order to operate their business functions in
effective manner (Armstrong and Taylor, 2017). Developing and building a modern workplace
that provide various benefits to the company such as it increases their employees engagement
which helps them to increase their profitability, productivity and growth. In this report, selected
company is Amazon which is a multinational technological company and its main objective is
that to make long term growth by becoming world's highest customer centric company.
The report covers evidences that influence Amazon's structure, cultures and behaviour in
order to achieve 44% additional sales and 220% profit in the first quarter of 2021. It further
describe various factors with evidences that influenced individual behaviour towards Amazon's
increased sales and profit.
MAIN BODY
Amazon's structure, cultures and behaviours that influenced them to achieve 44% additional
sales and 220% profit in the first quarter of 2021
Amazon is the advanced multinational e-commerce company which provides their
services with the help of its employees in all over the world. Its organisational structure is type of
Vertical hierarchical approach in which it operate its functions which is based on groups and
geographical divisions. This structure helps them to make effective top down control of their
global operations and increase their market share as well as maintain its largest position in the
market. Its organisational culture is very intensive along with extensive emotional and it provide
some physical pressure to some of its employees (Berg, 2019). Its organisational culture and
behaviour are connected in order to make efficient and reliable culture that influence employees
towards success. During Corona virus Pandemic, Amazon maintain their organisational
structure, culture and behaviours in effective manner that helps them in order to earn 220% profit
and increased 44% additional sales in the first quarter of 2021. In context of Amazon, its
organisational structure, cultures and behaviours during pandemic are discussed below:
Organisational Structure
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Organisational structure refers to a method that guides company, how to perform its
certain activities in effective manner that helps them to achieve its organisational goals
respectively. These activities consist certain rules, procedures, roles and responsibility in order to
perform task in the organisation. In context of Amazon, its organisational structure follows
hierarchical system in which its senior management team consider three CEOs and three senior
vice presidents and they are responsible for every aspects of the company. Effective features of
its organisational structure that influence them in order to increase their sales and profit in first
quarter of 2021. Due to large size of Amazon its management system developed hierarchical
structure in their organisation. It makes clear Understanding of roles and responsibility between
their employees which helps them to perform their task in effective manner. This will help to
maintain orders during pandemic in more efficiently (Boddy, 2011). It operate its warehouses
closer in effective manner and its delivery drivers distribute or delivers products to their
customers in less time. All these activities helps them to increase their profit and sales in
pandemic. One of the most important feature of the hierarchical structure is to make flexibility in
the business which helps them to adapt frequent changes that occurs in the external market. Due
to corona virus pandemic many companies faces various problems in order to operate its
business in relevant manner. Flexibility in the organisational structure helps management of the
Amazon in order to adopt changes and run their business in effective manner. Stability in its top
management helps them to increase their additional sales by 44% and earn 220% profit in first
quarter of 2021 in effective manner.
Organisational Culture
Culture can be defined as beliefs, customs, thought process, ideologies etc. of a
specified society, group or place. In business parlance, organisational culture is cluster of
principals, expectations and practices that governs the behaviour of employees in workplace.
There should be healthy culture in organisation that aids employees to interact better among
themselves and develop mutual understanding and interpersonal skills (Grey, 2017). In context to
Amazon, types of culture of Handy organisational culture are discussed below: Power Culture- Under this culture, power and authority remains with top management,
they are the ones who take decisions for the organisation as a whole. They further
delegates their responsibility to subordinates, who have to strictly follow their
instructions without taking any initiative of their own. If top management of Amazon
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apply this cultural practices, they can take quick and responsive decisions which are
needful in Corona Pandemic. Task Culture- Under this, organisations form teams for achieving different targets or
solving critical problems. Individuals having common interests and specialisation come
together in order to become a team. These team members participate and contribute
equally to accomplish task in an innovative manner ( Huczynski and Buchanan, 2013). If
managers of Amazon choose this type of culture it makes organisational environment
comfortable and enjoyable which makes it operations function in efficient way. Person culture- Under this type of culture, employees felt most valued and important in
workplace while keeping the organisation at back-seat. They only think of their personal
interests whereas ignoring organisational goals and objectives. If this type of culture is
adopted in Amazon there is large scope of employee's personal and professional
development.
 Role Culture- Under this, role and responsibilities of employee are delegated to them
according to their specialization, educational qualifications and experience. Every
individual felt responsible and accountable for workings in the organisation. If Amazon
follows this culture it is beneficial in providing stability, certainty and continuity in
operations which is essentially required in corona pandemic.
From the above discussion, it has been evaluated that Amazon is practising role culture
at their workplace. Individuals are delegated to their role as well as responsibilities according to
their specialisation. Employees are asked to explore new ideas and take risk with boldness. This
aids company in seeking new opportunities in order to provide efficient online retail services
which ultimately helps in generating 44% additional sales as well as 220% hike in profits at the
time of Corona Pandemic in first quarter of 2021.
Organisational Behaviour
Organisational Behaviour refers to a knowledge about human behaviour in the
organisation which is important for the company in order to know about behaviour of their
human resources in order to make them productive for the company in effective manner. It helps
organisation to develop better relationship in their working area by achieving individual's,
organisational and social goals in effective manner (Knights and Willmott, 2012). In respect of
Amazon, its management follows supportive organisational behaviour which focus on motivated
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and ambitious leaders in order to guide their worker towards success. This behaviour is based on
motivating employees by making effective relationship between managers and employees of the
organisation. It is necessary for the leaders in order to familiarize with organisational culture that
help them to motivate employee to perform in effective manner. This makes their working
environment effective which helps employees in order to develop their own thinking and take
some initiatives from it. The top management of the Amazon does not reach to their employees
so, they Provide some powers to its managers to motivate and support their employees in order
to make them productive for the company in effective manner (Martin and Fellenz, 2010).
Amazon motivates their employees by offering and providing stock options from their inventory
in order to maintain loyalty in their organisation. During Pandemic management of Amazon
provides proper support to their workers in order to maintain their safety while performing task
at that time. They follow all safety measures in order to control situation and motivate their
employees by providing them employment and various benefits in order to survive in this
situation. All these things help Amazon in order to earn 220% profit and additional sales 44% in
first quarter of 2021.
Factors that influenced individual behaviour at Amazon towards their increased sales and profit.
Individual behaviours refer to a method in which external or internal factors are analyse
in order to identify how an individual behave or react on particular situation in an organisation. It
analyse their expressed emotions such as love, anger, happiness, rudeness, etc. in distinct
conditions of a company. Individual behaviours has a great impacts towards company's
performance. Positive individual behaviour in the organisations helps them to become productive
and earn maximum profit whereas negative individual behaviour cause various problems and
bring huge losses for the company (Masood, 2019). Factors that affecting individual behaviour
are classified in three categories that are personal factors, environmental factors and
organisational factors. In case of Amazon, factors that influenced individual behaviour towards
their increased sales and profit are personal factors. These personal factors are divided into two
characteristics, Biographic and Learned characteristics.
Biographic Characteristics: Biographic characteristics refers to genetic features of an
individual which is inherited by their parents or ancestor. These features are gift that provided to
the individual at the time of birth. In respect of Amazon, influenced of these biographic factors
are discussed below:
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 Psychical Characteristics- This characteristics associate with individual's complexion,
skin, height, vision, size of nose, weight, etc. which influence its performance. In context
of Amazon, psychical characteristics of an individual behaviour helps them to earn
maximum profit of 220% profit and additional sales of 44% in first quarters of 2021. This
influence an individual to have an attractive personality in order to behave gently within
organisation in effective manner.
 Age- It is an inherited characteristics of an individual which is determined by the date of
their birth. In respect of Amazon, individual age influenced them in order to earn
maximum profit (Mullins, 2016). According to this young individual are more energetic,
risk taking, innovative, more efficient and even perform task in pandemic in safe manner. Gender- In this characteristics individual behaviour is influenced by the inherited
condition by being women and men as genetic in nature. In regards of Amazon, gender is
also influence towards their increased sales and profit. According to this, by providing
employment to the men and women in equal manner makes their working environment
most effective in order to perform its functions in effective manner.
Learned Characteristics- In this characteristics focus on the changes in individual behaviour
that may occurs due interaction with the environment (Armstrong and Taylor, 2017). In
accordance with Amazon, influenced of learned characteristics in individual behaviour towards
their increased sale and profit are discuss below:
 Personality- In this characteristics, it indicates the person's growth of Individual's
psychological system. It describes personal traits of Individual such as extroverts,
aggressiveness, patience, dominance, etc. In case of Amazon, managers maintaining
individual personality that helps them to earn maximum sales and profit during pandemic
situation.
 Perception- It refers to a viewpoint in which individual interprets a specific situation. It
is a process in which an important information strike in individual's mind and
interpretation takes place in order to solve any situation in effective manner. In account
of Amazon, management allows individuals in order to solve situation in effective
manner with their interpretation if occurs in pandemic situation.
 Values- It refers to global beliefs that provide some effective judgements and actions in
particular situations. In context of Amazon, it focus on particular ideas of an individual
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which is based on their right, good and desirable opinion and helps organisation to earn
maximum profit in effective manner.
CONCLUSION
From the above mentioned report, it is concluded that the modern workplace help
companies in order to operate their business by using modern technologies in effective manner.
Management of Amazon uses hierarchical organisational structure in their organisation in order
to manage their organisation in effective manner. They follow role culture in their organisation
in order to provide roles and responsibilities to the individuals in order to perform their task in
effective manner. Its organisational behaviour is supportive in nature in order to provide support
to their employees in pandemic situations which results in increased sales and profit. Personal
features of individual behaviours influenced Amazon in order to increased their sales and profit
in first quarter of 2021.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Armstrong, M. and Taylor, S., 2017. Armstrong's Handbook of Human Resources Management
Practice, 14th Edition, Kogan Page.
Berg, E. W., 2019. The changing workplace: how both sides can win (Doctoral dissertation, The
College of St. Scholastica).BUETI, G., 2020. How modern means of communication
have influenced interactions in the workplace: the case of the Franklin Templeton.
Boddy, D., 2011. Management: An Introduction (5th edition) Harlow: Pearson.
Grey, D., 2017. A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book about Studying
Organisations (4th edition) London: Sage.
Huczynski, A. and Buchanan, D., 2013. Organisational Behaviour (8th edition) Harlow: Pearson.
Knights, D. and Willmott, H., 2012. Introducing Organizational Behaviour and Management
(2nd edition) Andover: South Western/Cengage
Martin, J. and Fellenz, M., 2010. Organizational Behaviour and Management (4th edition)
Andover: South Western/ Cengage.
Masood, A., 2019. Doing gender, modestly: Conceptualizing workplace experiences of Pakistani
women doctors. Gender, Work & Organization. 26(2), pp.214-228.
Mullins, L, 2016. Management and Organisational Behaviour 11th Edition, Pearson.
Online:
Weise. K. 2021. Amazon's profit soars 220 percent as pandemic drives shopping online.
[Online]. Available through:
<https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/29/technology/amazons-profits-triple.html)>
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