Growth Squads: Centralized vs. Decentralized
A growth squad is a trade-off between speed and cultural change. A centralized team optimizes for velocity with dedicated members, while a decentralized (embedded) team spreads the growth mindset by borrowing staff.
Why it exists
Companies need to drive growth, but simply telling everyone to "do growth" is ineffective. Growth squads were created to provide focused, accountable resources to solve specific growth problems, like improving user activation or retention, through rapid experimentation.
The mental model
Think of structuring a growth team as choosing between a Special Forces unit and embedding trainers in regular army units. The Special Forces (a centralized team) are fast, specialized, and execute missions with high velocity. The embedded trainers (a decentralized team) make the entire army better over time but don't execute missions themselves as quickly. The choice depends on your primary objective: immediate results or long-term capability building.
How it works
There are two primary models. First, a centralized team is a dedicated, full-time squad of PMs, engineers, and marketers who report to a growth lead. Their only job is to run experiments and move growth metrics. Second, a decentralized (or embedded) team consists of members "borrowed" from other functional teams. These members split their time between their core responsibilities and growth initiatives, acting as growth ambassadors within their home teams.
When to use it
Use a centralized model when you need to move fast, prove the value of growth, or tackle a specific, urgent problem that requires dedicated focus. This structure optimizes for experiment velocity. Use a decentralized model when the primary goal is to spread a growth mindset and culture across the entire organization. This structure optimizes for long-term cultural change and cross-functional collaboration.
When not to use it
Don't use a centralized model if you're worried about creating a "growth silo" that alienates other teams and prevents the spread of a growth culture. Don't use a decentralized model when you need immediate, high-velocity results, as part-time members will naturally move slower due to competing priorities. The biggest mistake is copying a structure from another company without analyzing your own specific needs for velocity versus cultural diffusion.
One canonical example
A company wants to improve new user sign-ups. A centralized approach would be to form a dedicated team of four people who spend 100% of their time A/B testing different sign-up flows. A decentralized approach would be to pull a PM, marketer, and engineer from their respective teams to work on the sign-up flow, while they also maintain their other duties. The centralized team will ship tests faster, but the decentralized team will teach their home departments about experimentation.
Interview question
When a company's immediate priority is to achieve rapid, measurable results for a critical growth metric, which growth squad model is most suitable?
- a.The centralized model, because it is designed for high-velocity experimentation with dedicated teams.Correct
- b.The decentralized model, which leverages borrowed staff to foster long-term cultural change.
- c.The decentralized model, as it effectively spreads a growth mindset throughout the organization.
- d.A model that prioritizes cross-functional collaboration over dedicated, full-time focus.
Why? this is the answer
The card states that a centralized model should be used "when you need to move fast, prove the value of growth, or tackle a specific, urgent problem that requires dedicated focus" and that it "optimizes for experiment velocity." Options A, C, and D describe characteristics or goals of the decentralized model, which is explicitly noted as not suitable for immediate, high-velocity results.
Just read this? Test yourself on what you have been reading.
Read the original → reforge.com
- #growth
- #org design
- #experimentation
- #product management
You just looked this up. Could you explain it out loud?
That is the part interviews actually test. Tezvyn takes questions like this one and gives you what the interviewer is really checking, the answer that lands, and the mistake that ends the conversation, in the four minutes before your next meeting.
The iPhone app is on the way
We are building it. Until it lands, nothing here is held back from you: every interview card, your saved cards, streaks and the job board all work in Safari, plus hundreds of free practice quizzes of thirty questions each. Sign in and it all carries over to the app the day it arrives.
Want it as an icon? Tap Share at the bottom of Safari, then Add to Home Screen. It opens full screen and the cards you have read stay available offline.
We are hiring for this. Open roles that interview on growth — each one lists the topics its interview covers.
See open roles