In his first letter to shareholders from Amazon, CEO Andy Jassy talks about AWS, Prime and work

Andy Jassy, ​​who became Amazon’s CEO last year, has released his first annual letter to shareholders, which serves as a review of how the company has performed in 2021 and outlines its goals for the future. The letter begins by praising Amazon Web Services’ role in supporting businesses during the pandemic — a familiar topic for Jassy, ​​who previously served as CEO of AWS. The letter also addresses well-known issues such as supply chain disruptions, labor shortages and Amazon’s focus on getting more Prime packages out, faster.

Work is a hot topic for Amazon right now. Aside from the difficulty finding new employees, Jassy addresses reports that the company has significantly higher injury rates than the industry average for warehouse workers by saying it is working to systematically solve “the 100 biggest pain points of the employee experience.” But Jassy is silent on the subject of work organization. Amazon is currently in the midst of two contentious union elections, one in Bessemer, Alabama (where the union protested Amazon’s actions against activists) and the other in Staten Island, New York (where Amazon protested after the union’s historic victory). Another union election is scheduled to begin on April 25 at the LDJ5 plant.

You can read the full letter to shareholders here. It’s lengthy and how much value you get from it depends on how interested you are in Amazon’s business, but it might provide some insight into the tone Jassy is trying to set for his tenure at Amazon. If you’re interested in learning more about him, we have a great account of his history with the company which you can read here.