Mehul Kapadia, Chief Revenue Officer, Locus.sh, discusses the role of innovation and sustainability in logistics and supply chain management.
Locus.sh is the cornerstone of modern logistics success, and few embody this principle as effectively as Mehul Kapadia, Chief Revenue Officer at Locus.sh. In this detailed interview, Mehul shares how Locus.sh fosters a culture of innovation, integrates environmental consciousness, embraces diversity, and overcomes challenges in the logistics and supply chain industry.
Innovation at the Helm: From RideSafe to Locus.sh, your journey embodies innovation. How do you maintain this culture of innovation within Locus.sh, especially as the company scales?
Delivering real-world growth through innovation remains central to Locus’s operating culture. As an operating principle, we ruthlessly prioritize solving challenging problem statements that deliver the maximum value to our clients and stakeholders. We then approach these problems from a first-principles approach. In essence, we break down the problem into constituent parts, thoroughly understand them, question any assumptions, and point out any biases before coming up with solutions from the ground up. We also encourage thought diversity to foster innovation. This means getting together highly skilled people with diverse backgrounds and thought processes to share their ideas on the best way forward.
Right from our early days of inception in a residential flat in 2015, we firmly believed that the drive towards innovation and excellence largely depended on how fulfilled our team members felt. Over the years, we have observed when team members work on challenging projects that widen their skill sets and drive real-world impact, it brings out the highest levels of creativity and fulfillment in them. That said, the other piece to the puzzle is ensuring that they have a workplace where they feel valued and are supported to reach their fullest potential. We actively encourage employees to pursue their passions and interests beyond their work scope. Whether playing sports, engaging in adventure activities, or pursuing other hobbies, Locus provides the flexibility and support for employees to explore their interests.
Besides our people approach in our day-to-day operations, we have also crafted HR policies supporting employees in their different phases of life. Apart from industry-standard maternity benefits, we also offer strong paternity leave policies. New fathers can bond with their children just as much as mothers, cultivating a family-friendly work environment. Another standout policy is our unlimited leave policy, allowing team members to manage their time off while ensuring their work is covered. With this well-rounded approach, we have been consistently successful in maintaining a culture of strong innovation and excellence.
Tech for Good: Locus.sh has significantly reduced CO2 emissions through its logistics solutions. Could you share more about how Locus.sh integrates environmental consciousness into its technology and business model?
At Locus, we have always believed that sustainability and business growth go hand in hand. By leveraging cutting-edge solutions, Locus.sh actively promotes sustainable operations by minimizing resource wastage, and raises awareness about the environmental impact of logistics activities. At the heart of Locus.sh’s approach lies in our AI-powered logistics management platform, which optimizes delivery routes by considering over 180 variables, including fuel consumption and distance traveled. This intelligent route planning enhances operational efficiency and significantly reduces carbon emissions associated with transportation.
Moreover, Locus’s platform automates critical functions such as order capture, allocation, sorting, and returns management. This automation streamlines processes, minimizes waste, and promotes sustainability by ensuring high On-Time-In-Full (OTIF) rates while reducing the need for additional resources and reattempted deliveries.
The platform goes a step further by calculating the carbon footprint of each delivery, empowering its clients with valuable insights into their environmental impact. Armed with this information, companies can take targeted actions to reduce emissions further and contribute to a greener future.
Diversity in Thought: You’ve mentioned loving thought diversity. How does this philosophy shape your hiring practices and team dynamics?
We firmly believe that diversity in thought catalyzes innovation and growth. This philosophy shapes our hiring practices and team dynamics, fostering an environment where diverse perspectives are welcomed and actively embraced. Locus encourages interactions among our diverse regional teams, creating a rich exchange of ideas, perspectives, and best practices. By appreciating different cultures, we enhance our collective understanding and approach problems with a multifaceted lens, ensuring that solutions are well-rounded and inclusive.
Furthermore, Locus implements inclusive insurance policies that are LGBTQ+ friendly. We recognize that family structures vary among our team members, and our policies ensure that nominees for insurance benefits can be anyone our employees consider family, promoting inclusivity and accommodation. At Locus, we nurture diversity of thought through initiatives such as our annual Locus Construct Hackathon event. These events bring together team members from diverse backgrounds, showcasing how diversity fuels creativity and innovation, keeping us ahead in competitive sectors.
We understand that fostering diversity is about hiring practices and creating equal opportunities for growth and development. Locus invests in Learning & Development opportunities and management training programs, ensuring that every team member, regardless of their background, has the resources and support needed to succeed and reach their full potential. By embracing thought diversity, Locus cultivates a vibrant, welcoming, and innovative culture that celebrates individuality while harnessing the collective power of different perspectives. This approach strengthens our team dynamics and drives our ability to deliver cutting-edge solutions and stay at the forefront of our industry.
Facing Challenges: As Locus.sh grows, what are the most significant challenges you’ve encountered in the logistics and supply chain industry, and how have you overcome them?
As Locus.sh continues to grow and expand its presence in the logistics and supply chain industry, we have encountered various significant challenges along the way. However, our unwavering commitment to innovation and problem-solving has effectively enabled us to overcome these hurdles. One such prominent challenge we solved has been the optimizing of fulfillment at the last mile. . Last-mile logistics, which involves getting goods from distribution centers to the final destination, is one of the most complex and expensive legs of fulfillment. Factors like traffic congestion, unpredictable on-ground conditions, and ever-evolving customer preferences around convenience, predictability and flexibility pose significant obstacles to growth at scale.
To address these challenges, the Locus Dispatch Management Platform enables AI-driven order-to-delivery excellence. It optmizes decision-making across key functions through route optimization, live tracking, and efficient resource utilization across multiple fulfillment channels and models. The platform can help make every delivery more efficient than the last, which results in fewer miles traveled, and more deliveries being done in a day. As a result, the platform also equips workforces for excellence and enables companies to scale with lower emissions and bring sustainable growth..
To stay ahead of the competition, we have focused on continuous innovation, offering cutting-edge solutions that keep us at the forefront of the industry. Our commitment to technological advancements and ability to adapt to market dynamics have been crucial to our success. Today, we must also consider the environmental impact and sustainability as crucial challenges the industry needs to address while continuing to grow. Reducing carbon emissions, optimizing routes, and adopting eco-friendly practices are critical. We have integrated sustainability into our technology and business model. We optimize routes to minimize emissions, promote the adoption of electric vehicles, and measure carbon footprints to enable our clients to make informed decisions.
Finally, global expansion and localization present their own set of challenges. Scaling operations across different regions requires adapting to local regulations, cultural nuances, and varying customer expectations.
Cross-Functional Leadership: With your extensive background across sales, marketing, and partnerships, how do you approach integrating these functions to drive growth at Locus.sh?
At Locus.sh, our approach to integrating sales, marketing, and customer success is centered around fostering a collaborative and transparent culture. We actively work to dismantle departmental silos by promoting interdepartmental projects and open communication channels.
In practice, this is where each department works on campaigns strategically integrated with others. For example, we align our marketing strategies with sales objectives, ensuring that our campaigns are not only creative but also directly contribute to our sales pipeline. Regular updates and dashboards keep everyone informed and accountable. Our marketing and sales teams work closely to define and target key customer segments. By sharing insights and data, we can tailor our messaging and approach to resonate effectively with our target audience.
We cultivate a collaborative culture where the free flow of information brings success for all teams. Joint training sessions, collaborative brainstorming sessions, and shared success stories that highlight the impact of our integrated efforts are key elements to manifesting this culture in day-to-day operations. By extension, establishing strong feedback loops between sales, marketing, and customer success ensures continuous learning from our engagements. This allows us to refine our strategies to better meet customer needs. By integrating these functions seamlessly, we drive growth and ensure that our teams work together towards our common goals.
Global Strategy: Given your role in expanding Locus.sh’s market across North America, India, APAC, and the Middle East, what key factors do you consider when adapting your strategies to different regions?
We consider several key factors when adapting our strategies to different regions as we expand our market presence.
Understanding regional nuances is crucial as each market has its unique characteristics. We conduct extensive market research to understand the local business landscape, customer behavior, and competitive environment, helping us tailor our strategies to meet the specific needs of each region.
Ensuring a deep understanding of how our product can be used in different markets is another essential factor. We analyze what has worked for our existing customers and leverage these insights to craft compelling use-cases for prospects. Actively seeking feedback from our customers in each region helps us understand their pain points and requirements. This feedback is vital in refining our product and approach to better serve each market.
Engaging with local stakeholders is key to our success. We hold regular discussions with local partners, customers, and industry experts to gain insights into cultural nuances and business practices. This cultural understanding helps us build trust and credibility in each market. We also adapt our marketing and sales strategies to align with local preferences and practices. This includes localizing our content, participating in regional events, and partnering with local influencers and organizations.
Our strategies are not set in stone. We remain flexible and adaptive, continuously monitoring the market and adjusting our tactics based on real-time feedback and performance data. By combining these factors, we ensure that our global strategy is both cohesive and highly agile in addressing the unique needs of each region we operate in.
Sporting Lessons: How have your experiences in sports informed your leadership style and approach to challenges at Locus.sh?
My experiences in sports, particularly as an avid F1 fan and having worked with the Motorsport Network, have significantly shaped my leadership style and approach to challenges at Locus.
Teamwork and collaboration, learned on the playing field, form the core of our culture. Every individual at Locus contributes their unique strengths towards a common goal. Discipline and ownership are vital traits for success in both sports and business, empowering our team to take charge and deliver their best efforts. Resilience and adaptability, essential in sports, are also embraced at Locus. We view challenges as opportunities for growth and innovation, always ready to try new approaches when faced with obstacles.
Just as a successful F1 team relies on precision, strategy, and seamless coordination between drivers, engineers, and pit crews, we emphasize meticulous planning, real-time data analysis, and tightly coordinated teamwork to navigate the complexities of the logistics industry.
Finally, clear and transparent communication, prioritized through regular team huddles and open dialogue, is the glue that holds our team together. Moreover, a culture of perseverance and celebration, as seen in the best sports teams, is ingrained in our approach. We acknowledge and celebrate wins, big or small, while understanding that success is a journey. In moments of setback, we draw inspiration from the resilience of athletes, learning from mistakes and persevering towards our goals with unwavering determination.
