One Growth Marketer Hiring Hack

Earlier I shared some of my favourite growth mindset interview questions. But what if you can’t even find some decent candidates? Given the dearth of truly good experienced startup growth marketers in Europe right now, any other ways to fill this critical role?

The Common Mistake

If you’re trying to hire a good startup growth person, and you have the usual “filters” (performance marketing, startup stage, SEO experience, Mixpanel expert, etc.) you’ll be fishing in the same pool with every other startup, and you’ll likely over-pay for a sub-par candidate. (I’ve seen this movie too many times.) But if you broaden the criteria and check other pools, you can still find some superb candidates.

A Better Idea

After reading my “growth mindset interview questions,” my friend (and Udemy founder) Gagan Biyani kindly offered a suggestion for finding these magical people. With his permission, I’m passing it on:

“The best profile is somebody who is a former failed founder who also worked in a highly data-driven roles such as investment banking, consulting, or an engineer. In addition to being bright and analytical, these people tend to be highly ambitious, results-driven, and comfortable with a quick cadence, moving at an uncomfortably fast speed.”

In any case, don’t forget to use the growth mindset interview questions from my previous posts. And best of luck with this critical but tricky hire!