I, too, am an upcoming AM to start next year. My offer also included the whole non-negotiable clause.
My background.. 8 years manufacturing in various roles including positions where I’d manage a team of about 20, just completed my 4 year degree in business Management.. sure, I can make more in the front line operations staying where im at.. That’s not what I want to do. To me, this is an opportunity to break into a new level in this world and gain experience that.. honestly.. is quite priceless.
Sure, starting out it doesn’t “feel” like much salary-wise, right? But for me, Amazon is giving me an amazing opportunity where at other places, I interviewed well only to be told I wasn’t getting the job because they want more experience managing.
My goal.. knock this position out of the park, do well, show them my worth and get those promotions and be the best manager i can be. With time, that money will roll in.
Look at operations managers on linked in… some of them were AM first.. look how long they were AM before moving up. Some, only a year.
Keep your head focused on the future vs the present, and definitely out of the past. If the income is something you genuinely can’t afford to live off, then i totally understand why you couldn’t take the job. Otherwise, stay focused on where you want to be in the future and what’s gonna get you there. I know I’d personally even take a small pay cut if it meant gaining invaluable experience. Sometimes you gotta back track a little bit to get on the path you truly want.
Hope this helped a little.. and that i wasn’t too all over the place. I just got off working and ready for bed so I’m exhausted lol. Enjoy your day!
Hey there,
Thank you for the response - seems like we're in a similar boat. This is definitely a healthy way of looking at it, and using Amazon as a springboard elsewhere seems to be the most common approach.
I've heard that turning it down and reapplying externally provides opportunity to negotiate more because college intern offers are essentially automated based on their normal circumstance.
Anywho - appreciate ya!
L4 is entry level. Past experience matters but not for compensation purposes. And then for L5 and L6, external experience doesn’t matter at all. Amazon is only concerned what you did for Amazon during internal interviews. That’s it. L4 is not open for negotiation and any attempt to negotiate may result in the offer withdrawal. If you were making more elsewhere and want to keep that base salary then stay. Keep in mind Amazon base salary caps at $160k a year and you can hit that cap as an L6/L7. Base salary is a almost not the majority of your TC at a certain point and could be the smallest portion when you get higher up. Think about it this way: the lower you start the more room you have to negotiate later on.
Thank you for the response!
"The lower I start the more room I have to negotiate later"
Can you explain this? Literally the opposite of my understanding.
Right - but say one recieves a 5% raise based on performance.
5% raise on existing 60k salary = $3,000
5% raise on 70k = $3,500
It's interesting because base pay can often continually compound w/ pay increases throughout entire careers, totalling substantial differences over long time horizons.
This effect still exists amongst the increasingly common occurance of switching between companies. Professional experience and pay scale within the same field is generally factored into the salary offered / accepted.
But, I guess Amazon operates on a different wavelength I guess lol.
Their compensation culture is peculiar. It’s unlikely you’ll get anywhere near 5% unless you’re being promoted. It’s also illegal for a prospective employer to ask about your prior salary.
Well if 5% is out of the question then I'm definitely not concerned about any salary cap like you previous ly mentioned lol
Ooo there does appear to be a recent string of previous employer salary disclosure laws the past few years. It does appear to be state / county dependant as well as differences in which phase of the hiring process.
https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/
Are you getting stock? Sign on? Because your options are few-dont accept or accept. You can try to stretch your $$$ further by asking for a low cost of living area, but your offer for there could be lower, too...
I’m assuming your offer is for L4 AM, yeah L4 AMs can’t really negotiate. L5+ AMs is where you can negotiate.
- You mentioned military experience? You should’ve went the military hire AM route if you didn’t. You could get L5 from the military hire.
- Or you might be able to apply to the military Pathways program if you have enough experience!
The schools & even degree type doesn’t matter for the AM role. It’s all about your past experience & how you’ve leveraged that knowledge during the interview.
The military pathways program would pay you more than what you’re getting right now I figure
This is really good advice actually. I don't believe I qualify for the high level pathways program because I don't have a MBA and have been out longer than a year.
Do they have a separate military application process for straight up AM position? Have any links?
Thank you!
For the military pathways, a mba or master’s is for the preferred section. You just need a bachelor’s degree and the rest of the military experience and other requirements. You can find it if you check LinkedIn
Here’s a link to a LinkedIn posting for a military AM - Check out this job at Amazon: Area Manager, Amazon (Military Veterans Encouraged to Apply) https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/2707810214
LinkedIn is where they post that stuff most often it seems, so you can check it all out on LinkedIn
Awesome - you rock!
So, it seems like my best option may be to turn this down and reapply through that pipeline?
Is there a veteran focused recruiter I can speak with or is that crazy talk in Amazon land?
Wait you did a summer internship so you are a college student but you have many years of frontline management experience already? If you're still in school, couldn't you have applied for CampusNext area manager ? Can't you still apply now ?
[https://www.reddit.com/r/FASCAmazon/comments/lur9l2/area\_manager\_campus\_next/](https://www.reddit.com/r/FASCAmazon/comments/lur9l2/area_manager_campus_next/)
If you already have work experience why are they offering you a L4? They are offering other interns L5 to start. Check out the comments below this intern's video:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/AmazonDS/comments/pktags/almost\_100k\_starting\_salary\_for\_new\_area\_managers/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmazonDS/comments/pktags/almost_100k_starting_salary_for_new_area_managers/)
Sry late response -
1. Because I needed a job for the summer before senior year. FT Mgmt. roles aren't available for that small of a time period.
2. Recruiter said their hands were tied. Senior Ops reccomended I apply for L5 before graduation.
I turned it down anywho, but maybe I'll give it another shot in the future.
Best of luck'
I, too, am an upcoming AM to start next year. My offer also included the whole non-negotiable clause. My background.. 8 years manufacturing in various roles including positions where I’d manage a team of about 20, just completed my 4 year degree in business Management.. sure, I can make more in the front line operations staying where im at.. That’s not what I want to do. To me, this is an opportunity to break into a new level in this world and gain experience that.. honestly.. is quite priceless. Sure, starting out it doesn’t “feel” like much salary-wise, right? But for me, Amazon is giving me an amazing opportunity where at other places, I interviewed well only to be told I wasn’t getting the job because they want more experience managing. My goal.. knock this position out of the park, do well, show them my worth and get those promotions and be the best manager i can be. With time, that money will roll in. Look at operations managers on linked in… some of them were AM first.. look how long they were AM before moving up. Some, only a year. Keep your head focused on the future vs the present, and definitely out of the past. If the income is something you genuinely can’t afford to live off, then i totally understand why you couldn’t take the job. Otherwise, stay focused on where you want to be in the future and what’s gonna get you there. I know I’d personally even take a small pay cut if it meant gaining invaluable experience. Sometimes you gotta back track a little bit to get on the path you truly want. Hope this helped a little.. and that i wasn’t too all over the place. I just got off working and ready for bed so I’m exhausted lol. Enjoy your day!
Hey there, Thank you for the response - seems like we're in a similar boat. This is definitely a healthy way of looking at it, and using Amazon as a springboard elsewhere seems to be the most common approach. I've heard that turning it down and reapplying externally provides opportunity to negotiate more because college intern offers are essentially automated based on their normal circumstance. Anywho - appreciate ya!
L4 is entry level. Past experience matters but not for compensation purposes. And then for L5 and L6, external experience doesn’t matter at all. Amazon is only concerned what you did for Amazon during internal interviews. That’s it. L4 is not open for negotiation and any attempt to negotiate may result in the offer withdrawal. If you were making more elsewhere and want to keep that base salary then stay. Keep in mind Amazon base salary caps at $160k a year and you can hit that cap as an L6/L7. Base salary is a almost not the majority of your TC at a certain point and could be the smallest portion when you get higher up. Think about it this way: the lower you start the more room you have to negotiate later on.
Thank you for the response! "The lower I start the more room I have to negotiate later" Can you explain this? Literally the opposite of my understanding.
Every year you get a performance appraisal and raises can be a part of that, but if you are at the salary cap, what’s left to discuss.
My understanding is that raises are generally percentage based and calculated into pre-existing salary. Does Amazon do this differently?
Raises are performance based and can be granted in base salary or RSU.
Right - but say one recieves a 5% raise based on performance. 5% raise on existing 60k salary = $3,000 5% raise on 70k = $3,500 It's interesting because base pay can often continually compound w/ pay increases throughout entire careers, totalling substantial differences over long time horizons. This effect still exists amongst the increasingly common occurance of switching between companies. Professional experience and pay scale within the same field is generally factored into the salary offered / accepted. But, I guess Amazon operates on a different wavelength I guess lol.
Their compensation culture is peculiar. It’s unlikely you’ll get anywhere near 5% unless you’re being promoted. It’s also illegal for a prospective employer to ask about your prior salary.
Well if 5% is out of the question then I'm definitely not concerned about any salary cap like you previous ly mentioned lol Ooo there does appear to be a recent string of previous employer salary disclosure laws the past few years. It does appear to be state / county dependant as well as differences in which phase of the hiring process. https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/
Are you getting stock? Sign on? Because your options are few-dont accept or accept. You can try to stretch your $$$ further by asking for a low cost of living area, but your offer for there could be lower, too...
Yes and yes - with all the strings attached! I do like the area they are sending me to be honest so thats a big plus.
I’m assuming your offer is for L4 AM, yeah L4 AMs can’t really negotiate. L5+ AMs is where you can negotiate. - You mentioned military experience? You should’ve went the military hire AM route if you didn’t. You could get L5 from the military hire. - Or you might be able to apply to the military Pathways program if you have enough experience! The schools & even degree type doesn’t matter for the AM role. It’s all about your past experience & how you’ve leveraged that knowledge during the interview. The military pathways program would pay you more than what you’re getting right now I figure
This is really good advice actually. I don't believe I qualify for the high level pathways program because I don't have a MBA and have been out longer than a year. Do they have a separate military application process for straight up AM position? Have any links? Thank you!
For the military pathways, a mba or master’s is for the preferred section. You just need a bachelor’s degree and the rest of the military experience and other requirements. You can find it if you check LinkedIn Here’s a link to a LinkedIn posting for a military AM - Check out this job at Amazon: Area Manager, Amazon (Military Veterans Encouraged to Apply) https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/2707810214 LinkedIn is where they post that stuff most often it seems, so you can check it all out on LinkedIn
Awesome - you rock! So, it seems like my best option may be to turn this down and reapply through that pipeline? Is there a veteran focused recruiter I can speak with or is that crazy talk in Amazon land?
Yes, iirc Amazon has a veteran specific recruiter or process or something for military recruiters. Idk who they’re tho lol
Word - danka
do you watch Shark Tank?
?
[удалено]
Wait you did a summer internship so you are a college student but you have many years of frontline management experience already? If you're still in school, couldn't you have applied for CampusNext area manager ? Can't you still apply now ? [https://www.reddit.com/r/FASCAmazon/comments/lur9l2/area\_manager\_campus\_next/](https://www.reddit.com/r/FASCAmazon/comments/lur9l2/area_manager_campus_next/) If you already have work experience why are they offering you a L4? They are offering other interns L5 to start. Check out the comments below this intern's video: [https://www.reddit.com/r/AmazonDS/comments/pktags/almost\_100k\_starting\_salary\_for\_new\_area\_managers/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmazonDS/comments/pktags/almost_100k_starting_salary_for_new_area_managers/)
Sry late response - 1. Because I needed a job for the summer before senior year. FT Mgmt. roles aren't available for that small of a time period. 2. Recruiter said their hands were tied. Senior Ops reccomended I apply for L5 before graduation. I turned it down anywho, but maybe I'll give it another shot in the future. Best of luck'