Amazon Web Services, which incorporates its cloud business, is currently on an upward trajectory and is Amazon’s fastest-growing and most profitable division.
It is unsurprising then, that the head of the $12 billion business, Andrew Jassy (pictured), who assumed the role last year, took home more than the second-richest man on the planet with a net worth of $77,7 billion, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.
Jassy's $35,4 million in stock and about $179,000 in salary and a 401(k) match, according to a regulatory filing, made him the company's best-paid executive, ahead of the CEO of Amazon's consumer business Jeffrey Wilke, who netted $33 million. The shares were worth $54 million on Tuesday. Bezos earned a $81,840 annual salary and $1,6 million in security services. He does not receive equity compensation.
Like a number of other tech companies, Amazon remunerates top employees with biennial grants of restricted shares that vest over several years independently of company performance.
Amazon Web Services is looking to artificial intelligence to boost its cloud computing power and its 45% share of the infrastructure-as-a-service market. Its data centres serve many large firms and its growing influence is putting a traditional IT service providers under pressure, as Amazon develop its own infrastructure and databases.
Cloud computing has been one of the pertinent topics of discussion at the CFO Summit series, with the likes of Oceana CFO Imraan Soomra, reigning CFO of the Year Woolworths' Reeza Isaacs and McDonald's finance chief Zafar Mohamed providing their input. Keep an eye on upcoming CFO South Africa events.
