Part 3/4 - The AWS Technical Phone Interview for TAM role

How to prepare and what to expect

Feb 13, 2025

Hey, Prasad here 👋 I'm the voice behind the weekly newsletter "Big Tech Careers."

Amir Malaeb, one of the participants of my Big Tech Interview Preparation Workshop, cleared AWS interview recently. He is sharing his journey of transitioning from a restaurant business owner to Technical Account Manager (TAM) at AWS in a four-part article series.

In Part 1, Amir shared his journey of upskilling on AWS and cloud technologies. In Part 2, he shared how he got his resume shortlisted at AWS and cleared the online assessment for AWS TAM role. In this Part 3 article, he is sharing his experience of clearing AWS Phone Screen for TAM role.

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AWS Phone Screen for Technical Account Manager role

After successfully passing the online assessment, the next major step in the hiring process was the Technical Phone Interview—a one-hour conversation with an AWS technical expert. This interview is designed to evaluate not only your technical knowledge across multiple domains but also your problem-solving approach and ability to communicate complex concepts clearly.

Amazon doesn’t just test your knowledge; they assess how well you apply it in real-world scenarios. Your ability to explain technical concepts clearly is just as important as knowing the right answer.

Amazon recruiters provide candidates with detailed instructions and even schedule a prep call to clarify expectations before the technical interview. I highly recommend researching your interviewer (LinkedIn is a great place to start) as this can help you tailor your responses and make the conversation more engaging.

For my interview, I had the opportunity to speak with a senior security specialist who was incredibly knowledgeable and professional. From the start, he created a comfortable and engaging atmosphere, which helped the conversation flow naturally. If you’re preparing for this interview, expect a mix of technical questions covering networking, compute, storage, security, and databases, along with some behavioral questions designed to assess your experience working on projects.

One of the key takeaways from this round is that it’s perfectly fine to admit when you don’t know something. Amazon isn’t looking for perfection—they’re looking for candidates who demonstrate a strong technical foundation and structured problem-solving skills. If you don’t know an answer, it’s best to acknowledge it and explain how you would logically approach finding a solution rather than guessing.

With the right preparation, this can be one of the most enjoyable parts of the interview process. It’s an opportunity to showcase not just what you know, but how you think—something Amazon values deeply.

Interview Structure and Format

To help you understand what to expect, here's how my interview was structured:

Intro & Icebreaker (5-10 min): The interviewer introduced themselves and asked a "Tell me about yourself" question.
Behavioral Question (5 min): I was asked about a project I worked on and how I handled a technical challenge.
Technical Questions (40-45 min): Around 15 high-level technical questions covering various technical domains.
Wrap-up & Questions (5-10 min): The interviewer allowed time for me to ask questions about the role, team, or Amazon’s technical culture. Always prepare thoughtful questions. Not asking any questions may suggest a lack of curiosity or engagement.

How to Approach the Technical Questions

The key to excelling in this round is structuring your responses effectively. A good response should:

Define the Concept → Give a concise but clear definition.
Expand with Context → Explain how the concept works and why it matters.
Provide a Real-World Example → Demonstrate application to show deeper understanding.

For example:

Question: What is the difference between containers and virtual machines?

❌ Weak Answer:

“Containers run on an OS while VMs include an OS.”

✅ Strong Answer:

"Containers virtualize at the OS level, sharing the kernel, whereas VMs virtualize hardware and run a full guest OS. Because containers are lightweight, they start faster and consume fewer resources. However, VMs offer stronger isolation and are better suited for legacy applications that require complete OS-level control. In cloud environments, containers are often used for microservices, while VMs are common in lift-and-shift migrations."

This approach eliminates unnecessary follow-up questions and demonstrates depth of knowledge effectively.

Common Questions You Should Prepare For

You should expect general high-level knowledge questions covering various technical domains, including:

Compute (Servers, Virtualization, Serverless Computing)
Storage & Content Delivery (File, Block, Object Storage, CDN)
Databases (SQL, NoSQL, Database Design)
Networking (VPC, Subnetting, Load Balancing, Security Groups)
Security (IAM, Encryption, Compliance, Authentication Protocols)
DevOps & CI/CD (Automation, Infrastructure as Code, Pipelines)
Containers & Orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes, ECS, EKS)
Big Data & Analytics (Data Lakes, Data Pipelines, Streaming Processing)
Application Architecture (Scalability, High Availability, Fault Tolerance)
Cost Optimization (Best Practices for Cost-Effective Cloud Solutions)

You don’t need to be an expert in all of these, but you should have a strong grasp of at least two or three domains. Aim to be well-rounded but also have deeper expertise in key areas where you feel confident.

The “Tell Me About Yourself” – Make It Count

Almost every interview starts with this question. This is your chance to sell yourself, but keep it concise and relevant.

Focus on:

What you’ve achieved recently (Certifications, cloud projects, learning milestones).
Your technical knowledge (Skills in cloud computing, infrastructure, automation).
How your journey aligns with Amazon’s LPs (Ownership, customer obsession, learn and be curious).

For me, I structured something like this:

“I come from a background in business and technology, where I’ve worked on optimizing operations using cloud solutions. Over the past year, I’ve completed multiple AWS certifications, built hands-on cloud projects, and shared my learning journey publicly. My projects range from designing 3-tier architectures to deploying Kubernetes applications, all while aligning with best practices in security and scalability. I enjoy working in customer-facing roles, simplifying complex concepts, and driving impactful solutions—values that strongly align with Amazon’s mission.”

Keep it structured, professional, and don’t overdo it.

Be Ready for “Why Amazon?” and “Why This Role?”

While I personally wasn’t asked these questions, they are very common in this interview round, and I highly recommend preparing strong responses. These are opportunities to demonstrate your understanding of Amazon’s culture and how your experience aligns with the role.

Why Amazon?

Amazon is known for its customer obsession, innovation, and fast-paced culture. When answering this question, you should:

Show that you understand Amazon’s Leadership Principles and how they resonate with your personal and professional values.
Talk about Amazon’s impact in cloud computing and how AWS aligns with your long-term career aspirations.
Share your passion for problem-solving, customer success, and innovation, and how working at Amazon would allow you to maximize your strengths.

Why the TAM Role?

The Technical Account Manager (TAM) role is a unique blend of technical expertise and customer engagement. To craft a strong answer, highlight:

Your passion for working with customers and helping them succeed by leveraging cloud solutions.
Your ability to bridge technical solutions with business objectives, helping companies maximize their AWS investments.
Your experience in problem-solving, cloud technologies, and consulting, demonstrating that you have the right skills to guide customers through complex technical challenges.

Additional Common Questions to Expect

Besides technical breadth questions, you might also be asked:

“Tell me about a project you worked on and are proud of.”

Be ready to talk about a technical project where you had a significant impact, the challenges you faced, and how you solved them.

“Tell me about a time you dealt with a technical challenge.”

Structure your response using the STAR method to clearly outline the situation, task, action, and result.

Scenario-based questions related to troubleshooting a customer’s issue and best practices.

For example, “A customer is facing performance issues with their database workload—how would you approach troubleshooting this?”

The STAR Interview Technique

For behavioral and scenario-based questions, always use the STAR Method:

Situation – Describe the background/context.
Task – Explain the challenge or problem.
Action – Detail the steps you took.
Result – Share the outcome (use data and number whenever possible)

Practicing this technique will help structure your responses in a clear and compelling way.

Final Thoughts

The key takeaway from this round is: be prepared, be confident, and be honest.

Don’t rush to answer questions—take a moment to structure your response clearly. Show your depth of knowledge instead of giving surface-level definitions. If you don’t know something, say so—it’s far better than giving incorrect information.

Amazon is looking for people who are always learning, who embrace challenges, and who demonstrate strong problem-solving abilities. Take every step seriously, but don’t stress about the next round until you’ve cleared the one in front of you.

I completed my technical interview and received confirmation shortly after that I had passed. Next up was the Amazon Loop Interview, which would be the most comprehensive and challenging part of the process.

Stay tuned for Part 4 - The AWS Loop Interview Experience, where I’ll break down how I prepared for the final stage, what the interviewers were looking for, and the strategies that helped me succeed.

I would like to extend a big thank you to Amir for sharing his journey with Big Tech Careers readers. Here are links to the first two parts of the four-part article series he is writing:

Stay tuned for the last part of the four-part series in which he will share his AWS loop interview experience. I encourage you to follow Amir on LinkedIn for further insights.

Big Tech Careers