#200 Brian Halligan: Scaling Culture from Startup to IPO

Brian Halligan, co-founder and former CEO of HubSpot, discusses the journey of leading a company from the startup phase to IPO. Halligan shares his personal and professional experiences, including a snowmobiling accident that altered his life trajectory, the importance of company culture, the nuances of hiring the right people, and the complications involved in running a growing organization.


This episode is a must-listen for entrepreneurs, CEOs, and anyone interested in the intersection of personal growth and professional success.


Brian Halligan is currently a Senior Advisor at Sequoia Capital. In 2006, he co-founded HubSpot and served as its CEO until 2021. He is also a senior lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.




(00:00) Intro

(02:36) Halligan's life-changing snowmobile accident

(09:38) Shane's life-changing medical mystery

(14:38) The different phases a CEO goes through while growing companies

(20:44) Lessons learned from Steve Jobs

(23:18) How to hire and fire people (and when)

(27:55) The problems with "Best Practices" in business

(31:11) The most underrated public CEOs (and why Jerry Garcia from The Grateful Dead is on this list)

(43:38) The history and future of inbound marketing

(51:08) On decision making

(55:18) On work-life balance

(58:28) On success




Watch the episode on YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/c/theknowledgeproject/videos⁠⁠⁠⁠

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