Q&A with Matt Bellamy, Sr. Mgr - Product, On Road Experience

Everyone, meet Matt Bellamy ! Matt leads Amazon’s global on-road transporter experience product team, where he drives innovation to elevate the efficiency and quality of pickups and deliveries. His team is at the forefront of developing cutting-edge technology that supports transporters in over 20 countries, aiming to enhance their daily experiences and maximize both quality and efficiency. Among their notable achievements is the launch of the first edge CV-ML model in Last Mile, a groundbreaking advancement in on-road technology. They also manage a comprehensive suite of support products, including an image-based system that sends delivery photos to customers. In recognition of their exceptional work, Matt and his team were honored with the Door Desk Award, a prestigious accolade celebrating their impactful contributions to Amazon's culture and innovation. You can read more about this award and its significance here. Since 2021, Matt and his team have been awarded 14 patents, reflecting their dedication to pushing technological boundaries and continuously improving the delivery experience.

Matt, what is your favorite Amazon memory?

My favorite Amazon memory is our team winning the Door Desk Award at the 2024 All-Amazon Global Meeting for our on-road transporter experience simplification initiative. This award, presented by CEO Andy Jassy, was a significant moment for our team. It recognized the impact of our work on improving the Flex application, used by transporters around the world to service billions of packages annually. When we improve the app and their daily life experience through it, that is the best part of this job.

The Flex app is at the heart of the Transporter Experience. It is used in all phases of their day; guiding them through check-in and load out to pickups, deliveries, and the end-of-day return experience. Our team’s challenge is to strike the optimal balance between quality and efficiency, navigating the complex interplay between these elements. As Amazon’s business expanded, so did the complexity of the app. It was simply asked to do more. More workflows, more tasks, and more volume.

By early 2022, completing a delivery required multiple interactions, adding up to thousands per day. Transporters described this as a “heaviness” and “sluggishness” in the app, which affected their efficiency and experience. By the end of 2023, we had streamlined the app to reduce required interactions, resulting in route-level time savings. For 2024 and 2025, we are aiming to cut interactions even further and save even more time per route. This ongoing simplification not only improves operational efficiency but also enhances the transporter experience.

Receiving the Door Desk Award was meaningful not just for the business impact but for the positive changes we brought to transporters' daily work. We focused on reducing their reliance on devices, allowing them to work more safely and efficiently with both hands free and eyes up. A transporter at DSE4 summed it up perfectly: “This is so much easier I actually have time to think and do what I need to do to be successful. Before, I was always staring down at my phone and clicking away, just going through the motions.” Witnessing the tangible improvements for drivers in their day to day experience was incredibly rewarding.

What is something you have done that you would consider innovative or pioneering at Amazon so far?

One of my favorite and most innovative projects at Amazon has been the launch of the first edge CV-ML model across Last Mile. This pioneering solution provides real-time, photographic guidance to transporters, streamlining their complex daily tasks involving pickups and deliveries to various locations like homes, offices, schools, and military bases.

Traditionally, delivery preferences from customers were presented as text, which often led to confusion and frustration. Recognizing that a picture is worth a thousand words, we developed a model that surfaces proactive guidance images in the app. These images help transporters understand exactly how to complete their deliveries according to customer preferences.

The model also includes a real-time compliance check: it compares the photo taken during delivery with the guidance photo to ensure accuracy. If there’s a mismatch, the model refreshes the guidance, allowing the transporter to make adjustments and meet the customer's expectations more effectively. This approach significantly reduces cognitive load and alleviates the stress associated with interpreting text-based instructions.

As someone who has delivered around 70 routes worldwide, from Tokyo to Berlin, I personally appreciate how much easier and more reassuring this system makes the job. Seeing the guidance photo pop up during delivery and knowing immediately that I’m on track is a huge relief compared to waiting anxiously for potential complaints. This solution not only improved efficiency but also earned our team four patents for various components, marking us as first-to-market with such an advanced edge CV-ML application.

What is your favorite Leadership Principle and why?

My favorite Leadership Principle is Customer Obsession because of its powerful simplicity. Our team is fortunate to support two vital customer groups: the end customers who place orders and rely on Amazon to deliver as promised, and the transporters who work tirelessly every day to make that delivery happen.

What makes our focus on Customer Obsession so effective is how it connects transporters and end customers. By prioritizing a seamless and supportive experience for transporters, we not only make their jobs easier but also improve the service we provide to our customers. Well-supported transporters are more effective and tend to stay with us longer. Our goal is to partner with and support transporters to the best of our ability, leveraging their expertise to enhance overall performance.

We see the benefits of this approach in our work. For instance, a recent feature that allows transporters to adjust their routes more easily received positive feedback and led to a reduction in attrition. This demonstrates that focusing on transporters' needs results in better outcomes for everyone. However, it's crucial to remember that metrics alone don't provide the full picture. Sometimes, a change that looks beneficial on paper can actually detract from the transporter experience. For example, a proposed change to how transporters manage packages would have improved a specific metric but negatively affected their daily experience. By consistently asking, "What is best for our customers?" my team ensures that our solutions are advantageous for both our customers and transporters. I personally stay connected with transporters and customers by getting out on the road to deliver packages, which helps me stay in touch with their needs and validate our assumptions. I’m looking forward to an upcoming trip to Europe, where I’ll be delivering routes in several major cities. This hands-on experience is invaluable for ensuring our technology meets the needs of our global user base.

This principle reminds me to always step back and consider the bigger picture, ensuring our efforts align with both transporters' needs and customers’ expectations.

How do you foster diversity and inclusion on your team?

I’ve seen firsthand how diversity can make a big difference in team performance and dynamics. As a leader, I prioritize building teams with a variety of backgrounds and viewpoints consistently achieve better results and bring a richer array of ideas to the table. A 2020 McKinsey study supports this, showing that companies with strong gender and ethnic diversity are 25% more likely to have higher profitability. This resonates with me because, just like our diverse customer base, having a team that reflects different viewpoints helps us better understand and address the full range of needs present in our network. On top of that, I find that working in a diverse team is more stimulating and enjoyable, thanks to the wide range of ideas and perspectives we bring to the table. To maximize the beneficial impact of diversity the team dynamic must also ensure everyone feels comfortable to speak up and express their views. In the team we have instrumented mechanisms to ensure a feeling of safety and comfort, including off-sites and social hours, project and feature retrospectives, as well as anonymous feedback boards and brainstorming sessions. Team members are free to leave feedback at will, which we then discuss broadly as a team, or with a narrower audience as preferred by the submitter.

What do you do for fun/work life balance?

I’m a sports enthusiast, whether I’m playing or watching. Sports have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, and I plan to keep it that way. Physical activities are my personal retreat, helping me clear my mind and recharge which is essential for maintaining my work-life balance. Whether I’m listening to Audible or a favorite podcast at the gym or completely unplugging during a hike, these moments are crucial for my well-being. I especially thrive in team sports and activities, you can often catch me in the Seattle-area playing flag football and kickball leagues, or out on the golf course with friends!

For me, work-life balance isn’t just about time on task that yields results, but productivity of that time on task. Taking time outside of work is essential in order for me to bring a fresh and well-reasoned perspective. By setting clear work hours, I stay focused and make better quality decisions rather than just a high volume of decisions. I make it a point to read and reflect on topics before responding, often reading emails as they come in so I can start thinking about them, whether consciously or not, and removed from immediate pressure to respond. This approach helps me set clear expectations and avoid surprises, ensuring that I make the best decisions that fully address the needs, rather than just the quickest.

Amazing, thanks for sharing your Amazon story with us, Matt!