Jeff Bezos, the illustrious billionaire entrepreneur who took e-commerce to previously unperceived heights, is set to leave the $386-billion tech behemoth he founded from scratch and made him the world's richest.
Jeff Bezos Out, Andy Jessy In
Bezos announced during Amazon's annual stockholder's meeting that he is set to step down from his role as Chief Executive Officer on July 5. He also named Amazon Web Services (AWS) chief Andy Jessy as his replacement. Bezos described Jessy as an "outstanding leader," rising from the ranks to run Amazon's most profitable division.
Jessy was among the founding team members of Amazon's cloud computing services in 2009. He was appointed AWS chief executive in 2016 and made it an immense juggernaut in the IT industry. AWS had since earned $13.5 billion. According to Engadget, AWS earnings comprise 12 percent of Amazon's total revenue.
Bezos will not completely bow out of Amazon, as he will still take the position of executive chair.
Bezos' choice of July 5 as his exit date is due to "sentimental" reasons, per a CNN report. After all, it was the date he founded Amazon 27 years ago at his garage in Bellevue, Washington as a simple online marketplace for books. His initial success led him to expand to offering more items on his booming e-commerce platform, such as electronics, jewelry, video games, apparel, software, jewelry, toys, and more to become the flourishing, market leading retailer.
Jeff Bezos Net Worth 2021: $189.2 billion
Bezos holds the distinction of being the richest man in the world, according to Forbes, amassing a real-time net worth of $189.2 billion. He had since been a media mogul, who now has a controlling stake in The Washington Post while expanding Amazon to kickstart the Amazon Prime streaming service, and just recently acquiring the classic Hollywood studio MGM.
Bezos also owns the aerospace company Blue Origin, which builds rockets for commercial use.
Bezos' success in business is due to his inherent style as a transformational leader, constantly pushing changes from within the organization he manages and finding ways to make them innovative. He is known for his out-of-this world ideas in the board room, yet gets validated in the end.
Jeff Bezos to Focus on Initiatives Outside of Amazon
Per the CNN report, Bezos indicated since early this year that he was seeking to spend more time on his other ventures outside of Amazon, such as Blue Origin and his environmental initiative, Bezos Earth Fund.
As he steps down from Amazon, many stockholders showed concern about the future of the company, given the transition. Bezos was even asked the future of innovation in his now diversified corporate titan.
Bezos said that Amazon is in good hands under Jessy, since the Amazon cloud services chief "has the energy needed to keep alive in us what has made us special," a CNBC report stated.
Jeff Bezos: 'Amazon is About Taking Risks'
But he acknowledged that Jessy would face challenges in pushing Amazon's newest offerings, initiatives that Bezos described as having "no guarantee that it would work." Yet Bezos said such are "all risks" the company should take.
"The only way to get above-average returns is to take risks and many won't pay off," Bezos said. He added that the company had taken many risks and many have failed. But, Bezos said, per CNBC. "We'll continue to take big risks."
