Amazon Data Scientist Behavioral Interview — Leadership Principles

Context

You are interviewing onsite for a Data Scientist role. Interviewers will probe how you embody Amazon's Leadership Principles through past experiences. Use the STAR format (Situation, Task, Action, Result), quantify impact, and explicitly connect your actions to relevant principles.

Questions

1. Describe a time you had a conflict with a colleague and how you resolved it.
2. Tell me about a situation with a very tight timeline—how did you deliver?
3. Give an example of how you improved an existing process or work product.
4. Tell me about a time you had to Have Backbone; Disagree and Commit.
5. Describe how you insist on high standards in your work.
6. Share an example where you invented or simplified a process.
7. Describe a time you Thought Big.
8. Tell me when you were asked to deliver task A but eventually delivered A, B, and C—how did you exceed expectations?

Hints

• Answer using STAR format.
• Quantify results (e.g., lift %, hours saved, dollars, latency).
• Link your actions to Amazon Leadership Principles (e.g., Customer Obsession, Ownership, Dive Deep, Insist on the Highest Standards, Bias for Action, Invent and Simplify, Are Right, A Lot, Have Backbone; Disagree and Commit, Deliver Results, Think Big).