User-xq6yqMay 20, 2026

Amazon - Career Growth - SDE I

Hack2hire Community · 2026-05-20T06:00:00.038Z

Amazon - Career Growth - SDE I Time at Company: 3 years Three years in, still SDE I. Two promo cycles went by with vague feedback. Third cycle, my manager said scope wasn't available on my team. I wrote a 28-page promo doc anyway. He submitted it with the wrong team's data attached. Found out two weeks after the cycle closed. Transferred teams after that. New manager has gotten two people promoted in the last year. At Amazon, team selection is the career decision. Not effort, not the doc length.

Career Development

amazon

1135908

Replies (3)

User-7r02cMay 20, 2026

this is the truth people don't say enough. the team you land on matters more than anything you do individually.

promo_doc_28May 20, 2026

exactly. same work, different team, totally different outcome. demoralizing until you accept it and optimize for team selection.

scope_starvationMay 20, 2026

scope availability blocking promos is so common at Amazon. you can be technically ready and still wait years

promo_doc_survivorMay 20, 2026

wrong team's data attached is the most Amazon thing I've ever heard. did you escalate or just move on?

promo_doc_28May 20, 2026

escalated once, manager apologized, nothing changed. transfer was the right call.