Amazon, under the leadership of Jeff Bezos, has implemented a policy known as the two-pizza rule, but it’s not about limiting food intake. Instead, this guideline serves a specific purpose.
Bezos himself introduced this rule, which may leave some wondering why he would set such a limit for those employed by the company.
Realistically, allocating two pizzas per team might feel like offering a glimpse of satisfaction only to withdraw the full experience.
Personally, if given a mozzarella pizza, heavily laden with extra cheese, I could easily finish it on my own without any remorse.
Initially, this two-pizza rule seems peculiar.
One might wonder if there’s more to it than limiting the quantity of pizza. Are there restrictions on toppings, crust type, or pizza size, and does each person get only one slice?
These are significant questions to ponder, but while the specifics of the pizzas remain unknown, this principle is often cited as one of Bezos’ strategic approaches to success.
The concept is straightforward: every Amazon team should be small enough that two pizzas are sufficient to feed them, presumably to maximize efficiency.
This practice is particularly prevalent in Amazon’s Web Services, with the idea that a smaller team is more focused, clearer about their daily tasks, and spends less time in meetings due to constant communication among members.
According to Amazon’s Web Services website, which outlines the pizza rule, smaller teams may lead to increased individual productivity.
This setup encourages individuals to depend less on their team members and more on themselves to achieve maximum productivity and complete their tasks each day.
You might be wondering – how many people can two pizzas feed?
Typically, these teams consist of ten members or fewer.
If a team grows larger, Amazon will form an additional two-pizza team with a different focus, ensuring everyone remains highly concentrated on their objectives.
This approach aims to increase the time each team spends with customers, thoroughly understanding their needs and enhancing Amazon’s services accordingly.
While the two-pizza rule may appear unconventional, it does have a logic, though there are many variables in the pizza equation itself.
Should team members feel satisfied after sharing the pizzas? And, has it been considered that some individuals might consume an entire pizza themselves on a particularly hungry day?
Nevertheless, there seems to be a method behind this apparent madness.