The Wizard of Web Retailing：Jeff Bezos“电子商务教父”杰夫·贝佐斯
Jeff Bezos founded Amazon. com in 1995 as an online bookstore.Due to customer demand the company later expanded and added other products to its inventories, including videos, DVDs, electronics, toys, apparel, software, household items, and gourmet food.In an interview, Bezos indicated that books were chosen as Amazon.com's first product category“because they offered so much selection”；in the same interview, Bezos stated，“I think the main thing that has differentiated Amazon.com from conventional retailers is its obsessive and compulsive focus on the end-to-end customer experience.That includes having the right products, the right selection, and low prices.”
Started up in Seattle, Washington, Amazon. com had its first base of operation in the Bezos's garage, which was converted into a workspace initially housing three Sun workstations.Amazon grew to be an international enterprise and eventually expanded to include sites in Canada, the United Kingdom， France, and Japan.Coworkers and chroniclers of the Amazon story characterized Bezos as a visionary and as a man who on the surface was easygoing but kept his employees on demanding schedules.Bezos demanded quick turnaround time for Project completion.He scheduled weekly management meetings which often ran as long as four hours, with managers reporting on new products and pricing and taking on questions from the CEO.Bezos promoted innovative efforts among his employees through the Just Do It program, which rewarded those who came up with and executed ideas that helped the company-without first obtaining permission from their bosses.Bezos was committed to hiring the best employees, always looking for intelligent and innovative individuals.
Amazon. com：The Early Years
Bezos had paid close attention to the rapid rise of the World Wide Web, noting in 1994 that it was growing at an annual rate of 2300 percent, and therein looked for a pure entrepreneurial outlet. He began his research by making a list of the top 20 mail-order companies, observing that there were no book mail-order companies because a comprhensive catalog would have needed to be thousands of pages long and thus expensive to mail.Bezos decided that an Internet-based company would have the capability to offer a substantially wider selection of printed matter to consumers.Thus, he made a thorough study of the book business, beginning by attending the American Booksellers'Association's annual convention.
When Bezos told Shaw, his former boss, that he was leaving to launch an online book business, Shaw advised him to take some time to reconsider his decision in a characteristically creative way. He told Time that he pictured himself at 80 years of age and was certain that he would not regret either missing out on a six-figure Christmas bonus nor having tried to build an online business and failing.He stated，“In fact, I'd have been proud of myself for having taken that risk and tried to participate in that thing called the Internet that I thought was going to be such a big deal.And I knew if I didn't try this, I would regret it.And that would be inescapable.”
Bezos's parents supported his decision, investing the$300000 they had saved for retirement in their son's venture（which was later amply rewarded；they became billionaires）. Bezos and his wife, McKenzie, moved to Seatte to start the company and persuaded the highly successful programmer Shel Kaphan to be among the first employees hired.Bezos officially founded Amazon.com in 1994.In June 1995 the first Web site was tested.
On July 16，1995，Amazon. com was made available to consumers in every state and 45 other countries.Sales were immdiate.Bezos told Time，“Within the first few days, I knew it was going to be huge.”The media noticed and reported on Amazon, and as a result of the publicity the company's consumer base rapidly increased.Bezos owned and operated his own warehouses for the book inventory；as of 2003 Amazon had six.
After the Web site was launched, it was fine-tuned by Bezos and his employees to include features such as one-click shopping and customer reviews. Investors were able to buy stock in Amazon.com beginning in 1997 when the company went public.Over the next few years Bezos expanded the company by launching Web sites in Canada, the United kingdom, Germany, France, and Japan.
Management Style
On the surface Bezos was easygoing with a sense of humor. On the other hand, employees and chroniclers found that he was adamant in his expectations of quick turnaround time on project completion and high productivity, as well as of innovativeness and intelligence.Consequently, Bezos was characterized as a relentless recruiter of talented, innovative individuals.Bezos and the personnel manager are comprehensively inspective of the future employees'University grades and SAT scores.According to Bezos，“People here like to invent, and as a result other people who like to invent are attracted here.And people who don't like to invent are uncomfortable here.So it's self reinforcing.”
To encourage new ideas, Bezos instituted the Just Do It program, wherein the winners were those who proceeded with projects that they felt would help the company without first asking their bosses'permission. Bezos believed in the benefits of communication with customers and listened to and used their ideas for expansion.Via the Web site Amazon customers were encouraged to recommend their favorite books and products through reviews, and many compiled lists of their favorite items.
In 2000 Bezos and his company were put to the ultimate test. At a time when many dot-com companies were going out of business, Amazon's stock price fell from$106 in December 1999 to$41.50 in September 2000.To deal with this crisis， Bezos was forced to layoff 1300 employees in February 2001.He also cut backon products, eliminating those that had yet to prove profitable for the company.Through the efforts of Bezos and his team Amazon turned a profit in the last quarter of 2001.Amazon not only survived the crisis of 2000 but flourished.
Ultimately, Bezos，44，wants to create something that transcends his own company. He points to Sony Corp, whose co-founder, akio Morita, aimed to make Japan known for quality.For his part, Bezos wants to set new standards for providing a great customer experience.If he can pull that off he will deserve an enduring place in the history books.
1995年，杰夫·贝佐斯创立了亚马逊在线书店。根据客户的需求，该公司后来扩大了产品销售目录，销售产品包括录像带、DVD、电子产品、玩具、服装、软件、家居用品和食品等。贝佐斯在接受记者采访时说，图书被选为亚马逊的第一产品类别，是“因为它们提供了多种选择”；他同时表示，“我认为把亚马逊和传统的零售商区别开来的主要原因是：我们全力满足顾客的需求。这包括正确的产品、正确的选择，以及低廉的价格”。
亚马逊成立于美国华盛顿州西雅图，最初的业务是在贝佐斯家的车库里开展的，这个车库最初包括三个Sun工作站，后来被改装成工作间。渐渐地，亚马逊成长为一个跨国公司，业务扩展到加拿大、英国、法国和日本。同事和亚马逊传奇的撰写者把贝佐斯描述为一个有远见的人，表面上随和，但对雇员的工作要求极高。贝佐斯通常会要求项目快速完成。他每周召开管理会议，经常长达四小时：听取经理人报告新的产品和价格安排，和CEO讨论公司问题。贝佐斯推行“想到就做”的项目以鼓励员工创新，奖励那些想出和执行新点子来帮助公司的人，并且这些想法无须事先获得上级许可。贝佐斯致力于雇用最好的员工，并一直在寻找有才能、有创新能力的人才。
Amazon. com：创业初期
贝佐斯密切关注互联网的迅速崛起，他注意到：1994年网络年均增长高达2300%，他开始在这里寻找赚钱的途径。他的研究始于列出前20名邮购公司的名单，发现其中没有图书邮购公司，因为一个全面的目录可能长达几千页，因此邮寄费用昂贵。贝佐斯认为一个网络公司有能力向消费者提供具有更多选择性的印刷品。因此，他开始深入研究书籍业务，并参加了美国书商协会的年度会议。
贝佐斯告诉前老板肖他要离开公司，推出在线图书业务，肖劝他认真重新考虑一段时间。贝佐斯最终决定的方法极具特色和创造性。在《时代》杂志的报道中，他说：当时他想象自己已经80岁，那时他既不会后悔没能拿到六位数的圣诞节奖金，也不会后悔试图建立一个在线公司却惨遭失败。他说：“事实上，我一直引以为傲的是冒险参与自己看好的互联网业务。我知道如果不尝试一下，我一定会后悔的。一切在所难免，这是趋势所在。”
贝佐斯的决定得到了父母的支持，他们把节省下来的30万美元的养老金投资在儿子的公司（这笔投资后来得到充分的回报，他们成了亿万富翁）。贝佐斯和妻子麦肯齐移居西雅图，创办公司，并成功游说著名程序员夏尔·卡番加盟。1994年，贝佐斯正式成立亚马逊公司。1995年6月，第一个网站进行测试。
1995年7月16日，美国每一个州和45个其他国家的消费者都可以在亚马逊公司购物，销量迅速上升。贝佐斯对《时代》杂志说：“从一开始，我就知道我的公司前途无量。”媒体相继注意到亚马逊公司，并进行了报道，知名度的提高使公司的消费者数量迅速增加。贝佐斯拥有和经营着自己的书籍存货管理仓库，截至2003年，亚马逊已经有六个这样的仓库。
网站运行后，贝佐斯和他的员工精心调整其功能，增加了一键购物和顾客评语。1997年公司公开上市，投资者可以购买其股票。在接下来的几年内，贝佐斯扩大公司网站，在加拿大、英国、德国、法国和日本等地开展业务。
管理模式
表面上，贝佐斯是一个随和而幽默的人。然而，同事和撰写者发现，他专注于项目的快速周转与效率，同时执着于创新与才能的发现。因此，贝佐斯以不遗余力招聘有天分、创新能力强的员工而出名。贝佐斯和人事经理全面检查未来员工的大学成绩和SAT的分数。贝佐斯说：“这里的员工喜欢发明，因此其他喜欢发明的人也会被吸引到这里来。不喜欢发明的人待在亚马逊会不舒服。所以这是个自我加强的过程。”
为鼓励新思想，贝佐斯开展了“想到就做”这个项目——员工无须上级许可就可以直接实行对公司有利的想法并能获得奖励。贝佐斯相信与客户良好沟通、听取并采用他们的意见有利于公司的发展。通过网站，亚马逊鼓励顾客反馈使用心得，以此推荐他们最喜爱的书籍和产品，许多顾客列出了自己最喜欢的商品的清单。
2000年，贝佐斯和他的公司面临着终极考验。那个时候，众多网络公司破产，亚马逊的股票价格从1999年12月的106美元跌至2000年9月的41.50美元。为了应对危机，贝佐斯被迫于2001年2月裁员1300人。他还削减产品线，只保留了那些能使公司获利的商品。通过贝佐斯和他的团队的努力，亚马逊在2001年最后一个季度扭亏为盈。经历了2000年的危机，亚马逊公司不仅没有倒闭，反而生意更加兴隆。
现年44岁的杰夫·贝佐斯想要超越自己的公司，创造另一个奇迹。他向索尼公司看齐，索尼创建者之一川端章森田希望使日本成为高质量的象征，而贝佐斯希望为顾客完美购物的体验设立新标准。如果能成功，杰夫·贝佐斯将会在史书中留下浓墨重彩的一笔。
实战提升
核心单词
obsessive[əb'sesiv]adj.妄想的；使人着迷的
initially[i'niʃəli]adv.最初；开头
execute['eksikju:t]v.执行；履行；完成
officially[ə'fiʃəli]adv.官方地，正式地
adamant['ædəmənt]adj.固执的；坚强的
transcend[træn'send]v.超出，超越
财经知识一点通
网站（website）
开始是指在互联网（互联网起源于美国国防部高级研究计划管理局建立的阿帕网）上，根据一定的规则，使用HTML等工具制作的用于展示特定内容的相关网页的集合。简单地说，网站是一种通信工具，就像布告栏一样，人们可以通过网站来发布自己想要公开的资讯，或者利用网站来提供相关的网络服务。人们可以通过网页浏览器来访问网站，获取自己需要的资讯或者享受网络服务。
破产（bankruptcy）
是指当债务人的全部资产无法清偿到期债务时，债权人通过一定程序将债务人的全部资产供其平均受偿，从而使债务人免除不能清偿的其他债务，并由法院宣告破产解散。
翻译练习
Bezos was committed to hiring the best employees, always looking for intelligent and innovative individuals.
The media noticed and reported on Amazon, and as a result of the publicity the company's consumer base rapidly increased.
For his part, Bezos wants to set new standards for providing a great customer experience.
