The surprising trait of my best growth hires

My all-time best growth hires had no product or marketing experience. But they did have one thing in common:

They used to be scientists.

Here’s 3 reasons scientists make ideal growth leaders:

1. They are intensely curious, rigorous thinkers

2. They don’t confuse correlation with causation

3. They can distinguish assumptions from facts, exposing knowledge gaps, rather than papering over them with theories and false confidence.

In short, they know which assumptions are critical in your business, and how to test them it. Startups need to learn fast – and the scientific method is our most powerful framework for structured learning.

What I'm not saying

I am not saying that all scientists would make good growth hires!

I’m also not saying you should only hire scientists on your growth team. I have no science background. Nor do Andrew Chen, Elena Verna, Brian Balfour, Sean Ellis, or Amanda Natividad. (Though many other growth legends do.)

What I am saying

I am saying the best growth people are rigorous thinkers who acknowledge the limits of their understanding and constantly push to expand them.

I’m also saying that prior growth, marketing, or product experience (especially at large, famous companies) is absolutely not necessary, and seldom worth paying for.

Hire a strong mind over a strong resume.

I hope this helps!

P.S. If you want the rest of my startup growth hiring playbook, you can grab it here.