"Hire and Develop the Best" is one of our leadership principles, all over the world, wherever we operate. In Austria, two women work at the forefront of Amazon’s activities in the country: Marlene Schöllhuber, Country Lead Amazon Austria, and Miriam Enzi, Regional Manager Amazon Logistics.

Marlene joined Amazon in 2012 and has been responsible for the customer business in Austria since 2020. Over time, she has worked in various business areas, such as Amazon Marketplace, Kindle, and Alexa. "I never would have guessed this journey would last over a decade. But working with great colleagues and having the opportunity to always learn something new are the reasons why I enjoy working here so much after 11 years," she says.

Miriam takes care of the logistics side and is responsible for Amazon’s four Austrian distribution centres and the hundreds of Amazonians who work at them. As a female manager, she wants to encourage other women to believe in themselves and prevent clichés - such as the view that logistics is a "man's job" – from discouraging them.

Defining a successful career

Miriam explains her recipe for success as follows: "Ten years ago, I would never have thought that I would one day be running Amazon's logistics in Austria, but one day I made a conscious decision to seize opportunities instead of creating obstacles. In doing so, I have always worked very hard to be where I am today." With logistics, Miriam has discovered an area where she can play to her strengths. "In my career, I've always had people around me who I can trust, who believe in me, and who support me. Without these people, I would not be where I am today. That's why I would like to encourage you to find people who support you and stand by you, and also to be that person for someone else. I'm convinced that we are all strong individuals, but together we are stronger!"

Becoming a bestselling author with Kindle Direct Publishing

Writing stories and publishing books have been dreams for Jessica Winter since she was twelve. After graduating high school, she became a special education teacher, but she never lost sight of her dream. One day, one of her students inspired an idea for her first novel, which eventually turned into a two-part series. With positive feedback from her friends on her mind, Jessica published her first book through the self-publishing service Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), which allows anyone to publish e-books and paperbacks for free and reach millions of readers on Amazon. One thing led to another, Jessica went on to write more novels, and by her third book she had created a Kindle number one bestseller. She is now a professional writer under contract as an author with Amazon Publishing. With her personal story, she inspires others: "Maybe not all dreams come true and maybe not always immediately. But it's worth holding on to them and having the courage to reach for them,” she says.

Becoming a successful entrepreneur with Amazon

Janine Wohlgenannt and Rebekka Lorenz have very different backgrounds, yet they have a lot in common. Both have always longed to work independently and to be able to schedule their work themselves as "digital nomads", as Rebekka calls it. And so, they set themselves the goal of starting their own business. They quickly settled on e-commerce, specifically Amazon and its many programmes - such as Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) - that make setting up an online business easier - especially for career changers like Janine and Rebekka.

Rebekka founded her company HiLo sports in 2017 and now generates seven-figure sales. She was inspired by a trip to Asia, where she met people working from all over the world; as soon as she arrived home, she set about founding her company the very next day. "Just get going and do it, even if your plan may not be perfect at the start," Rebekka encourages others. "It's better to start right away and then gradually improve."

In 2019, inspired by Rebekka's success, Janine also made the decision to become an e-commerce entrepreneur. She quit her job as a waitress, took out a loan, and founded Panu Natural, a brand for vegan care products. "You can create anything you want. You should always be open to new things, because you never stop learning. The most important thing is to be purposeful. Set your focus, believe in your dreams and pursue your goal until you reach it,” says Janine.

The next step for the two entrepreneurs is launching on the North American market through Amazon. Here, too, they are counting on mutual support. "Let's be honest: If we see each other less as competition and more as support, and if we work together on our goals, we can get even further together," Rebekka confirms.

Motivations can vary, but if you strongly believe in your goal, you can achieve it. These success stories and those of many other women who have fulfilled their professional dreams with Amazon are proof of that.

You can read more about the career opportunities and training and development offerings at Amazon (such as Pathways), as well as what it's like to work here on About Amazon EU.

If you too dream of publishing your own books, you'll find all the Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) information you need here.

And if you too want to start your own online business, learn more about how to sell on Amazon directly here.