What FAANG execs read this week — May 25–June 1, 2026
Two Amazon alumni surfaced the week's recommendations. Ethan Evans made the case for Eli Goldratt's 1984 operations classic *The Goal* as the most important leadership book in the AI era. Richard Hua recommended Nir Eyal's new *Beyond Belief* and cited BCG research showing AI transformation is 70% human behavior change. Both converged independently on the same argument: the bottleneck isn't the algorithm.
Two recommenders surfaced in the May 25–June 1 window, both with Amazon roots. Ethan Evans (former Amazon VP) made the case for a 1984 manufacturing novel as the most useful leadership book in the AI era. Richard Hua pointed at Nir Eyal's new release on belief and adaptability, and separately cited BCG research on where AI transformations actually break down. Both, without coordinating, landed on the same diagnosis: the bottleneck isn't the algorithm.
Ethan Evans, former Amazon VP — The Goal by Eli Goldratt
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Ethan Evans — former Amazon VP, now founder of Level Up Leadership (171K LinkedIn followers) — published a recommendation on May 31 that got unusually direct: "I hated today's most important book for leaders. I was forced to read The Goal, by Eli Goldratt, and I hated it. I think it may be the most valuable possible book for leaders right now." 1 The post drew 204 reactions and 37 comments — the highest engagement of any recommendation in this cycle.
The Goal (1984), by Eliyahu Goldratt, introduced the theory of constraints: a production system runs at the pace of its slowest step. No matter how much you accelerate other stages, throughput is limited by the bottleneck.
Evans applied the framework directly to AI investment. AI tools have sped up coding, document drafting, and other knowledge tasks. But sales cycles, logistics networks, physical operations, and regulatory approvals haven't changed. He used Amazon as the example: AI cannot conjure additional delivery trucks or drivers. Optimizing the website with AI models produces no additional throughput if the last-mile capacity stays fixed.
His conclusion for leaders over the next two to three years: "the real problem" isn't AI adoption rates — it's converting AI productivity gains into actual market results. That requires finding and expanding the constraint, not just accelerating the stages that are already fast. 1
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Title | The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement |
| Author | Eliyahu M. Goldratt & Jeff Cox |
| Type | Book (business/operations) |
| First published | 1984 |
| Core argument | Systems are limited by their weakest link; improvement requires identifying and elevating that constraint |
| Recommender's framing | AI accelerates non-bottleneck stages but can't bypass physical or organizational constraints; leaders must find and fix the actual chokepoint |
Richard Hua, EPIQ Leadership Group CEO — Beyond Belief and BCG's 10/20/70
Richard Hua — CEO of EPIQ Leadership Group and former Worldwide Head of EPIC Leadership at Amazon (25K LinkedIn followers) — published two posts in this window, one on May 30 and one on May 31.
Beyond Belief by Nir Eyal (May 31)
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Hua's May 31 post recommended Nir Eyal's new book Beyond Belief, centering on what Eyal calls "practical and provisional" beliefs — holding enough certainty to act, while staying flexible enough to update when new evidence arrives. 2
Hua cited Eyal's example of Serena Williams: her coach told her she won 80% of points when she attacked the net, though the actual data was lower. She believed it, moved to the net with more confidence, and won Wimbledon. Hua's read of the book: the right question isn't "is this belief true?" but "is this belief useful to me right now?"
The title is aimed at leaders who need to project conviction in uncertain conditions — a different framing from the usual "growth mindset" literature in that it explicitly defends calibrated over-confidence as a tool, not a flaw.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Title | Beyond Belief |
| Author | Nir Eyal (author of Hooked and Indistractable) |
| Type | Book (psychology / leadership) |
| Core argument | Optimal beliefs are practical and provisional — act with conviction, revise when facts change |
| Recommender's framing | Useful for leaders who need to maintain confident direction without calcifying into dogma |
BCG's 10/20/70 AI transformation framework (May 30)
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In a separate post from his ACG M&A West conference appearance, Hua cited BCG research on what determines whether AI transformations succeed. The finding: roughly 10% algorithms, 20% technology, 70% people, processes, and behavior change. 3
Hua's framing positioned the 70% as the domain where leadership is irreplaceable — not the 30% that vendors, engineers, and procurement teams typically focus on. This is a research cite rather than a book recommendation, but it's paired with the Beyond Belief logic: the constraint in AI transformation isn't the model, it's the organization's ability to change behavior.
At a glance — May 25–June 1, 2026
| Recommender | Company / role | Item | Type | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethan Evans | Former Amazon VP; Level Up Leadership founder | The Goal — Eli Goldratt | Book | 204 reactions, 37 comments |
| Richard Hua | EPIQ Leadership Group CEO; former Amazon | Beyond Belief — Nir Eyal | Book | — |
| Richard Hua | EPIQ Leadership Group CEO; former Amazon | BCG 10/20/70 AI transformation research | Research cite | — |
No item was endorsed by more than one executive this week. Both Evans and Hua are Amazon alumni, and both converged — independently — on the same structural argument: the constraint in AI-era organizations is not the technology. Evans reached it through Goldratt's operations theory; Hua reached it through Eyal's behavioral psychology and BCG's transformation data. The books are worth reading as a pair.
Cover image: AI-generated illustration
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