How to Get Buy-In for Trade Compliance

(Materials Management & Distribution News – Deborah Aarts)

Get the right people on board and funding will be yours, experts say

Trade compliance errors cause significant headaches among international shippers, and they are almost completely preventable.

With the right training programs, staff can be taught to avoid the problems that interfere with successful international shipments. The trick, according to a panel at I.E.Canada’s recent annual conference, is convincing the C-suite to invest in that training.

It’s a tough job, but it’s not impossible, according to Farley Genge, Americas regional Customs leader for General Electric Canada Inc. He helped develop a comprehensive trade compliance instruction program that has dramatically reduced the company’s mistakes. The program – which includes an array of new standard operating procedures, risk assessment procedures, audits and metrics – has saved the company more than $10 million.

Before those savings were achieved, however, Genge had to convince his superiors to invest. To do that, he created a sales pitch.

He promised his bosses that the new program would reduce brokerage rates and increase the company’s price competitiveness. It would help the company proactively mitigate penalties and therefore thwart unwanted fines and protect its brand image. And, of course, it would improve cash flow – the costs of training would be more than offset by the savings generated by a compliant workforce. Read more here.