Bezos has a new key adviser
Amazon’s CEO has a new technical adviser — the second woman to hold the position in the company’s history.
Wei Gao has been named VP, technical advisor to Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos, a position she has held since July, according to her Linked In profile.
Internally, the position is described as Bezos’ “shadow” adviser, a highly coveted role because it involves following around the billionaire founder for a year or two and learning all aspects of the business, according to CNBC.
Gao, a female of Chinese descent, replaces Jeffrey Helbling, who was named technical adviser in early 2017. Gao is only the second female to shadow Bezos, according to the report.
Gao, who was most recently a VP of forecasting, has filled various roles during her 13 year tenure at Amazon, including senior positions on the Kindle, inventory planning and software development teams. Prior to Amazon, she was a senior software developer at Hyergroove Engineering.
The adviser’s role often paves the road for more opportunities. Maria Renz, who served as technical advisor to Bezos for two years, was named to the newly created role of VP of delivery experience in February 2017. She was the first woman to hold the adviser position.
Other high-profile shadows from the past include Andy Jassy, now CEO of Amazon Web Services, Greg Hart, VP of Prime Video, and Dilip Kumar, VP of Amazon Go, according to CNBC.
Wei Gao has been named VP, technical advisor to Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos, a position she has held since July, according to her Linked In profile.
Internally, the position is described as Bezos’ “shadow” adviser, a highly coveted role because it involves following around the billionaire founder for a year or two and learning all aspects of the business, according to CNBC.
Gao, a female of Chinese descent, replaces Jeffrey Helbling, who was named technical adviser in early 2017. Gao is only the second female to shadow Bezos, according to the report.
Gao, who was most recently a VP of forecasting, has filled various roles during her 13 year tenure at Amazon, including senior positions on the Kindle, inventory planning and software development teams. Prior to Amazon, she was a senior software developer at Hyergroove Engineering.
The adviser’s role often paves the road for more opportunities. Maria Renz, who served as technical advisor to Bezos for two years, was named to the newly created role of VP of delivery experience in February 2017. She was the first woman to hold the adviser position.
Other high-profile shadows from the past include Andy Jassy, now CEO of Amazon Web Services, Greg Hart, VP of Prime Video, and Dilip Kumar, VP of Amazon Go, according to CNBC.