About Me

? Hey, I’m Étienne.

I help entrepreneurs & innovators leverage customer insights to build and grow businesses.

I’m a three-time Startup Founder (Highlights, Flagback and HireVoice), a five-time entrepreneur, and a customer research expert. I love Lean, Agile, Customer Development, and I specialize in B2B.

In 2014, I published the first edition of Lean B2B: Build Products Businesses Want (second edition now available). The Lean B2B Methodology helps thousands of entrepreneurs and innovators around the world build successful businesses. The Lean B2B Masterclass expands on the content of the book.

In 2020, I followed up Lean B2B with the release of three new books: Find Your Market, The SaaS Email Marketing Playbook, and Solving Product.

My presentation 26 Time Management Hacks I Wish I’d Known at 20 was viewed by more than 32 million people around the world.


What I Looked Like in 2022.

 

Étienne Garbugli Photo
Étienne Garbugli Photo
Étienne Garbugli Photo
Étienne Garbugli Photo

You can download high-res versions of any of the photos by clicking on them.

All photo credits: Simon Vosgueritchian

Random Facts.

I grew up near Montreal, Canada. Studied Communications and Marketing. I created my first Website in 1998 (it was a Geocities bass tablature Website). I founded 5 businesses. I have over 16 years of experience in UX with highlights working as lead on a $40M flight reservation system at Aeroplan and defining Concordia University’s first-ever Intranet. I lived in Beijing, Hong Kong, Tbilisi, Singapore, etc, and I’ve been permanently travelling/working on the road since 2017 (view my travel map).

12 Things About Me. Most of Them Being True.

  1. Everything I own fits in a locker.
  2. I learn Chinese for the pleasure of learning. It got me from Hong Kong to the Kyrgyz border (Far West China).
  3. I plan to do a round-the-world trip someday I did a round-the-world trip in 2017. You can view my photos here.
  4. I actually like Keynote and Powerpoint. Honestly.
  5. I don’t have a car. I don’t plan on buying one.
  6. I know an awful lot way too much about hockey. I missed the game when I was living in Asia.
  7. My goal in life is to make a dent in the universe.
  8. I’ve had 3 knee surgeries (same knee) in the span of 5 years.
  9. I created a card game. I’m proud of the results.
  10. In a previous life, I played a lot of music and wrote soundtracks for movies. I was good at it.
  11. I love meeting new people. I’m a good networker.
  12. I created “Garbugli’s Law”. It even got Mike Godwin‏’s approval.