Building Bessemer: One Day at a Time
J. Ofori Agboka
Vice President People Experience & Technology (PXT) - Global Operations at Amazon
A few weeks ago, I was in Bessemer, Alabama at our BHM1 site. As I said in my last post, I travel to visit our sites as much as possible to listen, learn, and engage with our employees. It helps me see how our team is doing, where we can improve, and I lend support wherever I can. Dive Deep is one of the Amazon leadership principles, and these trips help me do that.
BHM1 Fulfillment Center is approaching its one year anniversary, yet it’s very much still Day 1. This site opened in the middle of COVID-19 when so many of us were struggling to make sense of what was happening to our country and world. Over 6,000 people found jobs at BHM1 since March 29, 2020.
I’ve spoken with many people at BHM1 and spent time listening to their fascinating stories. I learned about people who came to work at Amazon from jobs that had been eliminated, companies that have closed, ex-military personnel, people who wanted new careers, some who were looking for flexibility to earn some extra money, and young adults who had recently graduated from high school just understanding what it meant to have a 401k or have a first job.
Many have shared how positive they are about their new opportunities for personal growth and being able to provide for themselves and their families. Most of our Bessemer employees are taking advantage of Amazon’s healthcare, vision and dental benefits – and over half of them are saving for the future through their 401k, with a 50% company match. In less than a year, we’ve already promoted 160 people who are well on their way to long-term careers at Amazon.
A recent promotion went to Yolanda Holley. I met Yolanda, “YoYo” as she prefers, during my second visit to BHM1. She was so enthusiastic about her journey at Amazon and gave me permission to share her story. After getting out of the military, she worked at Kraft General Foods and Maxwell House until they downsized and she moved to Birmingham where she worked for US Steel in Fairfield, AL for 10 years before getting laid off. Then she worked for Buffalo Rock for two years where they made Pepsi and Mountain Dew. When COVID-19 came, and people got laid off, places were shut down.
YoYo was on unemployment when she got a job at Amazon, in May, 2020. She was excited to have full benefits on day one, and the opportunity to help build a brand-new company in Bessemer. YoYo was spotted quickly by her managers for her hard work and enthusiastic personality. They asked her if she was interested in being on the “space team” – the dedicated team of people who oversee social distancing, masks, and COVID-19 protocols at BHM1. Soon after, she decided to apply for a role as a safety HazMat coordinator, because she already had a federal HazMat certification. YoYo got the job – and a promotion – within only a few months of starting at Amazon.
In her own words, “Amazon has excellent insurance, they give out swag, gifts, things to boost morale, and incentives – if you work hard Amazon rewards you. It’s a good group of people and the company is supplying jobs for people who were jobless, and giving us an opportunity to grow. I tell people, “keep knocking on the door”. A door opened for me and I was more than happy to run in. I’m excited to have good people on my side. I’ve met a lot of beautiful people who ask me if there’s anything they can help you with, and that’s the way I want to be with this company. I want to grow and look back and help lift someone else’s morale, too. They really motivated me and I’m happy to grow with the company. I’ve already had three jobs and a promotion here. And I appreciate the way people treat me and offer me help if I need it. Everybody needs a little love.”
YoYo’s story and others like hers, are encouraging. However, can we do better? Of course we can, we will and we are – working together. Continuous improvement has always been part of Amazon. Opening BHM1 in March, 2020, as the global crisis began, at a time in the world when people needed our services and our goods more than ever, so many people stepped up and we learned so much. Nobody had a playbook for how to operate during a global pandemic, and as a team, we tried to find opportunities to maximize engagement with one another in a very different world. It was not easy for anyone to meet new people while wearing masks, or learn new ways to work as we introduced process changes and technology to help keep our people safe. But we’re still learning every day too, and working with our employees and teams, to take ideas, and make more and more changes.
Each day the team in Bessemer continues to inspire me and others. I see the launching and growth of employee resource groups like, the Military veterans group, Women@ Amazon and BEN, the Black Employee Network. I have actively seen the powers of potential and perseverance as diverse teams and leadership are in place like at BHM1 where half the leadership team are Black women and men.
I like the messages we're hearing from our Associates and leaders about teamwork, the progress they are seeing, the creativity and feedback about staying safe and taking care of one another. We care about what we’re building in Alabama - as one team.
I’m about to celebrate my own first “Amaversary” in April. As we prepare to celebrate the first year at BHM1, I and so many others believe in what we are growing, and our ability to help better individual lives and communities while serving customers. Each day, this is what we endeavor to create at BHM1, and all of our sites.
Lawson state social work
3 年Congratulations awesome
HR Specialist @ Insperity |Ex-Amazon| Versatile HR and Legal Professional| Pepperdine Law M.L.S. Graduate
3 年Proverbs 27:17 states “As iron sharpens iron, one person sharpens another person”. I think it’s important to live and serve in a community of one another. It’s imperative to grow and develop those relationships within those communities, and it’s nice to see the highest forms of leadership doing just that over with the folks at BHM1. The process of helping someone else improve absolutely requires a positive relationship. I am happy to hear YoYo’s story and am inspired to positively inspire and influence fellow associates here in the IXD network. Great read!
Senior IT Leader| Business Relationship Management |Driving Tech Modernizations| Cloud Technologies| Product & Program Management| Software Engineering| IT Operations |Cybersecurity| Operational Excellence
3 年Kudos! On the great work Ofori!
Executive Leader @ Amazon | Senior Site Leader, Amazon Pathways Graduate
3 年Love this story. Thank you for sharing and Congratulations on 1 year. Mine was a few weeks ago. Where did the time go?