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GustoGusto

Growth Hack an Ecosystem

Growth & Marketing

What it tests

Creative growth thinking beyond standard product levers — loops, network effects, and unconventional channels

Format

  1. 1Candidate receives a deliberately broad, non-product prompt — e.g. 'How would you growth hack a city?' or 'How would you grow adoption of a new public transit line?'
  2. 2They have 5 minutes to think silently, then 15 minutes to present their approach to the interviewer
  3. 3Interviewer probes: 'Which lever would you start with?', 'How would you measure this?', 'What's the compounding mechanism here?'
  4. 4Final 10 minutes: candidate must identify which of their ideas has the highest ceiling and why

What to look for

  • Do they reach for systems and loops — or just list tactics like 'run ads' and 'post on social'?
  • Can they identify a compounding mechanism (referral, network effect, content flywheel)?
  • Do they think about distribution before product, or build features in a vacuum?
  • Is their prioritization instinct sharp — can they pick one lever and defend it over the others?

Adaptation guide

Replace 'a city' with your own ecosystem: 'How would you grow a community of indie makers around our tool?' or 'How would you drive adoption of a new API among developers?'

Full description

Format:

  1. Candidate receives a deliberately broad, non-product prompt — e.g. "How would you growth hack a city?" or "How would you grow adoption of a new public transit line?"
  2. They have 5 minutes to think silently, then 15 minutes to present their approach to the interviewer
  3. Interviewer probes: "Which lever would you start with?", "How would you measure this?", "What's the compounding mechanism here?"
  4. Final 10 minutes: candidate must identify which of their ideas has the highest ceiling and why

Time: 30 minutes

What to look for:

  • Do they reach for systems and loops — or just list tactics like "run ads" and "post on social"?
  • Can they identify a compounding mechanism (referral, network effect, content flywheel)?
  • Do they think about distribution before product, or build features in a vacuum?
  • Is their prioritization instinct sharp — can they pick one lever and defend it over the others?

Adaptation: Replace "a city" with your own ecosystem: "How would you grow a community of indie makers around our tool?" or "How would you drive adoption of a new API among developers?"