Head of Growth
Head of Growth is responsible for revenue and user growth in high-risk products. The role builds the system of experiments, acquisition and retention channels, and coordinates marketing, product and analytics.
What a Head of Growth does
Head of Growth is the leader responsible for overall business growth: acquisition, activation, retention and monetization of users. In high-risk verticals, where ad platforms restrict traffic and regulators impose requirements on communications and onboarding, growth cannot rely on a single channel. Companies hire for this role to have one person who sees the entire funnel and owns its results, not individual activities.
Head of Growth usually reports to the CEO or COO and sometimes manages marketing directly. The role oversees performance marketing leads, CRM, product and analytics, and often the partnerships team. It sets experiment priorities, allocates budget across channels, and agrees with product and compliance which changes to the funnel can be launched.
The role sits at the intersection of business, product and marketing. Its main task is not the number of campaigns but manageable, repeatable growth with clear economics of acquiring each user.
Responsibilities
- Sets the growth strategy and quarterly targets for registrations, deposits or subscriptions, and revenue.
- Manages the funnel from impression to monetization and identifies the main points of loss in onboarding and the first deposit.
- Runs the growth experiment system: hypotheses, prioritization, A/B tests and documentation of results.
- Allocates budget across paid channels, partner programs and organic traffic based on unit economics.
- Agrees with product and compliance on funnel changes, including KYC steps and copy permitted for the vertical.
- Builds the link between marketing, CRM and analytics so that retention and repeat purchases are measured consistently.
- Monitors traffic quality and, together with the risk team, fights fraud and multi-accounting.
- Reports to leadership on growth dynamics, reasons for deviations and the forecast for the period.
- Hires and develops channel leads and analysts, and sets team processes.
Skills
- Understanding of the funnel and unit economics: CAC, LTV, ROMI, cohort payback.
- Ability to design and prioritize experiments with statistical significance in mind.
- Knowledge of performance marketing and partnership models: CPA, RevShare, hybrid terms.
- Data skills: framing tasks for analysts, reading SQL query results, understanding dashboards.
- Negotiating priorities and constraints with product, development and compliance.
- Understanding of regulatory limits on advertising and onboarding in crypto, dating and payments.
- Managing teams through goals and metrics rather than by controlling activities.
- Budget thinking: decisions to scale a channel are made on margin, not on volume.
Tools
- Google Analytics and product analytics (Amplitude, Mixpanel)
- Traffic and campaign tracker (Keitaro and similar)
- Ad accounts and affiliate marketing platforms
- CRM and lifecycle communication tools
- SQL and BI dashboards
- Jira or a similar task management system
- Spreadsheets for unit economics and budget models
How performance is measured
- Growth in new users and deposits or subscriptions versus plan
- CAC and ROMI by channel
- LTV and cohort payback
- Conversion at each funnel stage, including activation and first deposit
- Share of revenue from retention and repeat purchases
- Number of completed experiments and share of successful hypotheses implemented
By vertical
Crypto
In crypto products, growth is constrained by ad platform restrictions and regulatory requirements for risk and disclosure. Head of Growth builds the funnel around verification and KYC, relies on organic traffic, community and partnership channels, and closely monitors traffic quality.
Dating
In dating, the key metric is the activity and quality of the user base, not just registrations. Head of Growth works on retention, gender balance in traffic, profile antifraud and restrictions on creatives, so experiments in onboarding and subscription monetization take up much of their time.
FinTech
In fintech and payments, growth is tied to onboarding, verification and the first transaction. Head of Growth agrees every funnel step with compliance, calculates acquisition cost with chargebacks and declined payments in mind, and balances the speed of growth against risk.
Levels
Head of / Director
Head of / Director is responsible for the growth results of the entire business, including revenue and acquisition economics. They make decisions on budget and strategy, build the team and defend priorities before leadership, rather than taking part in daily campaign setup.
How to get there
Most often people move into this role from performance marketing, analytics or product growth: senior traffic specialists, heads of acquisition channels, and product analysts who have already run funnel experiments. Experience in a vertical with regulatory constraints matters, because that is where the link between growth, compliance and payment infrastructure becomes visible.
To prepare, it is worth mastering cohort-based unit economics, A/B testing methodology, basic SQL and product analytics. It helps to understand partnership models, how CPA and RevShare are calculated, and the typical causes of loss during onboarding. Practical experience managing budget and a team by channel is valued more than theoretical knowledge.
Growth into the role usually takes several years of work at the intersection of marketing and product: first owning one channel or one funnel stage, then several channels, then the full acquisition and retention cycle. The move is confirmed by results: lower CAC with maintained quality, higher LTV and a systematic approach to experiments.
Next steps: CMO (Chief Marketing Officer), COO (Chief Operating Officer), CEO (Chief Executive Officer), VP Growth, Head of Performance Marketing
FAQ
How is Head of Growth different from a marketing director?
A marketing director is responsible for the brand, communications and acquisition channels. Head of Growth looks at the entire funnel, from the first impression to retention and monetization, and owns the overall revenue growth. In practice the roles can be combined, especially in smaller companies.
What experience is needed to become Head of Growth in high-risk verticals?
Usually it requires experience in performance marketing or product analytics, backed by results in growth and acquisition economics. Understanding advertising restrictions and regulatory requirements in the vertical is a clear advantage. Management experience leading a team of several specialists is also expected at this level.
What determines the income of a Head of Growth?
Income depends on company size, vertical, geography, and how directly the revenue and growth this role owns affect the company's financial results. Compensation often includes bonuses for reaching targets and, in some cases, equity. Specific figures vary widely, so it is best to rely on current job postings.
What matters more to employers: experience in a specific vertical or the ability to grow in general?
In high-risk verticals both matter, but experience in a similar regulatory environment often outweighs general growth experience. Employers assess whether a candidate understands restrictions on advertising, onboarding and payments. The ability to quickly get up to speed in a new vertical is also valued, if the candidate can demonstrate it with examples.
Do I need to know programming or SQL?
Programming is usually not required, but SQL at the level of writing queries and understanding data structures is almost always needed. Head of Growth assigns tasks to analysts, checks their conclusions and must understand where the numbers come from. Without this it is hard to judge the quality of experiments and the reliability of reports.
Where should I start if I want to move toward this role?
Start by taking ownership of a specific channel or funnel stage and bringing it to a measurable result. Document experiments, CAC and LTV calculations and the reasons for changes. Gradually expand your responsibility to adjacent stages, and negotiate priorities with product and compliance.
Looking for a job in the industry?
Post an anonymous resume in our bot — recruiters from iGaming, payments and crypto search it every day.