Amazon Technical Programme Manager interview questions

I was called by one of their recruiters after a friend referred my resume onward, and then began a series of three phone screens with people in various Technical Program Manager roles across the company to get a feel for me, my personality and if I'd be a good cultural fit for the company. The interview questions were mostly about projects I've managed in the past, examples of things that I designed/managed that went really well and those that didn't, and one of the interviews had me analyze a current Amazon product or service for its strengths and weaknesses. Next, I needed to submit a writing sample to them answering one of two questions about challenges I've had in the past and how I solved them. Once that was in, I was invited to fly to Seattle and interview in-person with six different managers and senior managers. The interviews ranged from discussions on managing teams, how would I solve technical problems that Amazon has encountered, and a few design questions both real-world to Amazon and more esoteric in nature where I would whiteboard a solution. Everyone I spoke to seemed to radiate about the company and the culture there, whilst noting that the biggest problem is finding the right talent and the rush to find and hire the right people fast enough.

Initial contact was through email with no mention of the role, etc. I asked to have a job description sent. The job description required in depth coding skills. I emailed the recruiter back and told her I was not interested...hadn't coded in years and didn't want to and probably could not meet their min bar. Was told I would never have to code and the JD was generic. Huh? Ok, I agreed to the first phone interview just to see what they had. I can only describe the first interviewer as an arrogant prick, but civilized about it. Despite what I thought was a horrible experience (I was quite blunt with him and in several instances told him the question he was asking was irrelevant if this wasn't a coding position, etc) I was offered a second phone interview, which I agreed to. This was with the hiring manager and she was quite pleasant. Explained things clearer and added a dimension to the weak explanations I had recieved from first guy. I actually thought that interview went quite well, but in the end was sent an email about a week later indicating I would not be moving to the next stage. They did encourage me to apply for other opportunities, which may or may not be a canned response. Overall, I was impressed with the fact that the company actually gave me a response rather than leaving me hanging. I've heard alot of horror stories about other companies that are not as considerate. I did get the impression in the Kindle Division (where this position was located) things are very hectic and people are expected to work an insane amount of hours and burn out is high. I wasn't particularly interested in the Company or the role, but really just wanted to see what kind of an offer I could get out of them. Perhaps in the end that showed through and played a part in my loop stopping before the on-site interview.