HubSpot cofounder Halligan returns to lead the company, replacing current CEO

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Halligan, a cofounder of HubSpot with chief technology officer Dharmesh Shah, replaces Yamini Rangan, the chief executive for the past five years.

Cambridge business software firm HubSpot’s board has brought back former chief executive Brian Halligan to run the company again, with the hopes of arresting a long slump in its stock price.

Halligan, a cofounder of HubSpot with chief technology officer Dharmesh Shah, replaces Yamini Rangan, the chief executive for the past five years.

It’s been a turbulent time for one of the state’s most prominent public tech companies; just last month, the company announced it would cut 660 jobs, or about 7 percent of its workforce. Revenue from HubSpot’s software to help businesses with marketing, sales and customer support has grown steadily. But investors remain concerned that its customer base of small and medium-sized businesses might be enticed to drop it in favor of using AI to code their own apps.

Halligan, in a statement, promised a reboot would be coming. “This is a refounding,” he said, “and I can’t wait to start!”

And in an email, Halligan emphasized the company’s local roots: “Let’s put the Hub back in HubSpot.”

Halligan had been chief executive of HubSpot for 16 years, and led it through its initial public offering in 2014. The company had a market cap of around $30 billion when Halligan decided to step down as CEO in 2021 following a snowmobile accident. He has since been one of the key players in Propeller Ventures, a VC firm focused on climate-tech investments. Halligan says the Propeller fund is “going great” with two managing partners overseeing it, though he’ll stay on Propeller’s management committee.

On Thursday morning, HubSpot’s market cap hovered around $10 billion, with help from a modest bump in the stock price following the CEO news. The company’s shares jumped 8 percent to about $218 in morning trading on Thursday, down from a peak over $800 early in 2025.

Board chair Lorrie Norrington said Halligan has an unmatched knowledge of HubSpot’s customers, and a clear vision of how AI can help its growth.

The CEO change took effect on Thursday, though Rangan, who…

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