HubSpot’s board brought back co-founder Brian Halligan as chief executive on Thursday, Nov. 12, replacing Yamini Rangan after five years in the job. The change took effect the same day. Rangan also left the board and will stay with the Cambridge software company through Dec. 1 to help with the handover.[1][2]
The move comes as investors have pushed HubSpot’s stock far below its highs. Shares rose about 6% to almost $216 on Thursday after the announcement, compared with a peak above $800 early in 2025, and the company’s market value hovered just above $10 billion.[1] Last month HubSpot cut about 660 jobs, roughly 7% of its workforce, as The Boston Report covered at the time.
Who is Brian Halligan
Halligan co-founded HubSpot in 2005 with chief technology officer Dharmesh Shah and ran it as CEO for 16 years, taking it public in 2014.[1][2] He stepped down as chief executive in 2021 after a snowmobile accident, when the company was worth about $30 billion. Since then he has been one of the leaders of Propeller Ventures, a climate-tech venture firm. He will stay on that firm’s management committee while two managing partners run the fund.[1]
In an email reported by The Boston Globe, Halligan stressed the company’s local roots: “Let’s put the Hub back in HubSpot.”[1] Board chair Lorrie Norrington said Halligan has unmatched knowledge of HubSpot’s customers and a clear view of how AI can help the company grow.[1]
How Rangan’s exit was structured
CX Today, which reviewed HubSpot’s Form 8-K filing, reported that the filing describes Rangan’s departure as a termination by the company without cause. Under the filing, she is to receive $1,336,712.33 over 12 months plus health coverage and accelerated equity vesting. Halligan’s new pay package has not been set.[2]
The company also announced a change in its finance chief. Chief financial officer Kate Bueker will retire on Feb. 11, 2027. Karen Burgess, finance chief of Adobe’s Creativity & Productivity business, joins HubSpot on Nov. 30 as executive vice president and becomes CFO when Bueker leaves.[1][2]
Growth is slowing
HubSpot’s business kept growing under Rangan. Customers rose from 135,000 in 2021 to more than 311,000, and revenue grew from $1.3 billion in 2021 to an expected $3.7 billion this year. Third-quarter revenue was $947.6 million, up 17%.[2]
Investors have focused on what comes next. HubSpot told investors on Nov. 4 to expect fourth-quarter revenue of $945 million to $947 million, about 12% growth, which came in below analysts’ expectations and led several to downgrade the stock.[1][2] The company reaffirmed that outlook with the CEO announcement.[2] Some investors also worry that HubSpot’s small and midsize business customers could use AI tools to build their own software instead of paying for its marketing, sales and customer-service products.[1]
Halligan has called his return a “refounding.”[2] He has said he will rethink the company from the ground up but has not yet published a detailed plan.[2]
What it means for Boston tech
HubSpot is one of the most prominent public technology companies in Massachusetts.[1] For more on the region’s employers, see Boston Business News & Economy and the Boston Job Market tracker.
Our Take
This section is analysis and opinion. Bringing back a founder is a bet that the person who built the product can rebuild it faster than a newer CEO could. HubSpot is not shrinking. Its problem is that investors now judge software companies on whether AI will make their products less necessary. Halligan’s first job will be to show customers and shareholders a clear plan within a few quarters, before more of its value slips away.
Sources
- The Boston Globe: HubSpot brings back Halligan as CEO, replacing Rangan
- CX Today: Halligan Returns to HubSpot, Calling It a Refounding
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