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Software at Scale

Software at Scale 31 - Maju Kuruvilla: CTO/COO, Bolt

Maju Kuruvilla is the CTO and COO of Bolt, a startup that offers quick online checkout technology to retailers. Previously, he was VP and GM at Amazon Global Mile, in charge of Amazon’s global logistics and Amazon Prime fulfillment operations amongst other things.

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Highlights

00:30 - What does a VP at Amazon even do? The day-to-day experience of a VP/GM at Amazon. I think I’ve asked enough people this question that I finally have a vague sense of what these engineering leaders do (I think).

04:00 - Managing global logistics in one of the world’s largest logistics companies in the middle of a pandemic

09:00 - Shipping software quickly when you’re a large company. Two pizza teams with a twist.

16:00 - The role of software in global logistics. Amazon’s epic migration off Oracle databases. How to get thousands of people interested in migration or similar work.

25:00 - Launching Amazon Prime Now in 111 days (21 days more than what Jeff Bezos mandated).

38:00 - The complexity behind a checkout operation in an online store. Tax operations, compliance (!), and other complexities.

46:00 - A tech stack to solve the checkout problem.

51:00 - Building trust, relationships, and making an impact as an engineering leader in a new company. Everyone wants to hire great people, but what does that really mean?

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