#21 – Robots as a Service: Automating Warehouses With Locus Robotics | Dustin Pederson

Ventured Growth with Hercules Capital

The subscription e-commerce market is expected to grow by $784 billion by 2026. Locus Robotics, a subscription-based mobile robotics and software provider, is a pioneer leading the way in warehouse automation.
Dustin Pederson is the Chief Financial Officer of Locus Robotics, a company that supplies over 230 warehouse sites with up to 500 bots per site. With 15 years of experience in enterprise software, AI, warehouse automation, education, and aerospace, Dustin helps companies grow by enabling high-performance teams and overseeing all aspects of a business.
In this episode, Hercules Capital host Noah Carville and Dustin discuss the principles of scaling a business, fundraising and managing operations in today’s economy, the trade-offs between raising debt versus raising equity, and much more.
Topics Include:

• Dustin’s pivot from multifaceted companies to startups
• The guiding principles for scaling a business
• Aligning business needs, goals, and leaders
• The CFO’s responsibilities in managing scale
• Advice for fundraising and managing operations in today’s economy
• Creating the right leadership team
• Trade-offs between raising debt vs. raising equity
• And other topics…

Dustin Pederson is the Chief Financial Officer for Locus Robotics, a subscription-based autonomous mobile robotics and software provider for over 230 warehouse sites in the U.S. He is also the previous VP of Finance and Operations at Cognito and Advisory Board Member for Text IQ.
With 15 years of experience in enterprise software, AI, warehouse automation, education, and aerospace, Dustin helps companies grow by enabling high-performance teams and overseeing all aspects of a business. His roles have covered venture fundraising, business planning and analysis, sales strategy and operations, finance, marketing, legal contracts management, and facilities management.
Resources Mentioned:
Shoe Dog, by Phil Knight: https://www.amazon.com/Shoe-Dog-Memoir-Creator-Nike-ebook/dp/B0176M1A44