Global trade transactions account for trillions upon trillions of dollars each year, and this number is expanding as we forge into the future. Additionally, it is becoming more complex to manage US and international regulations.

Yet, despite these factors, compliance departments remain woefully underfunded and understaffed. According to our export compliance research, 14.6% of compliance professionals believe that their company’s executive management is not aware of trade compliance.

How do you get executive level cooperation and sponsorship of your initiatives?

Join American Shipper and Management Dynamics for an upcoming educational webinar, “Bringing Compliance into the Boardroom.” This webinar, featuring a panel of global trade experts, will discuss how to get your voice heard when speaking to your c-level executives about enhancing your trade compliance operations.

In this trade compliance webinar, our expert panelists will discuss:

• Pain points of each member in the boardroom
• How these points relate to compliance issues
• Key messaging to use when speaking to each board member
• Tools to use in your presentation, such as quantifying compliance and its effect on the bottom line
• How automation can contribute to your efforts by adding value and saving money

Speakers:

	Virigina Thompson Director, Import/Export Operations & Global Trade Compliance Crate & Barrel
	Nathan Pieri SVP Marketing & Product Management Management Dynamics, Inc
	Beth Peterson President BPE

Register Today for “Bringing Compliance into the Boardroom!

Barclay’s violated international sanctions by permitting its employees to accept payments into the US from banks in blocked countries, including Iran, Myanmar, Cuba and Libya.

According the the Wall Street Journal article, “Barclays Settles U.S. Charges”

In a settlement with U.S. and New York prosecutors made public Monday, the London-based bank agreed to pay $298 million to settle criminal charges. And it acknowledged that its employees, between 1995 and 2006, helped banks in Iran, Cuba, Libya, Myanmar and Sudan evade U.S. regulations prohibiting payments into the U.S.

Between 1995 and 2006, prosecuters allege that Barclays accepted over $500 million in transactions, concertedly covering up the country names where the illegal payments originated from.

In other cases, Barclays returned payments out of fear they would be detected by U.S. officials, sending fax cover sheets that said: “Payments to U.S.A. must NOT contain the word listed below.” Prosecutors said payments often were re-sent after references to the sanctioned countries, which included Sudan and Myanmar, were omitted.

Other recent high-value fines have come through in recent months, including:

• ABN Amro settled for $500 million to end allegations that it helped Iran, Libya, Sudan and Cuba evade U.S. sanctions by “stripping” the identities of transactions to conceal the countries from which they originated.
• Credit Suisse Group paid $536 million to settle similar violations involving transactions with Iran.
• In 2009, a unit of London-based Lloyds Banking Group paid $350 million related to similar charges after being accused of masking the origin of payments from Iran and Sudan.

WSJ discusses the Barclay’s case in the first half of the video below:

Xe Services, formerly called “Blackwater,” was also fined this week for violating export regulations under ITAR, or the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. While acting as a contractor for the US government in Iraq, the company committed 288 violations of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), including the “unauthorized export of defense items and provision of defense services to foreign-end users in multiple countries from 2003 to 2009.”  While no sensitive technologies were involved, the items do require a license before they can be exported.

The New York Times reported that Xe Services committed violations included illegally exporting weapons to Afghanistan, unauthorized proposals to train troops in Sudan, providing Taiwanese police officers with sniper training, and shipping military equipment to its personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The company has settled the charges with the State Department to the tune of $42 million. Several outstanding allegations, investigations, and indictments remain in process, however, as these aren’t trade compliance related I’ll leave them for your own personal reading at NYT.

Just goes to show, an ounce of prevention, using trade compliance systems, is worth a pound of cure.

Special Thanks to Global Trade Content Blog and the Export Compliance Group on LinkedIn.

Screen Restricted Parties to Prevent Doing Business with Sanctioned Countries:

White Paper: Six Best Practices to Improve Compliance with a Restricted Party Screening Solution: In this white paper, we look at some critical features to look for when searching for an optimal RPS solution, and how RPS solutions can manage even high-volume and complex screening processes.

This 60-minute round-table discussion covers best practices for developing your company’s Export Management and Compliance Programs, including:

• Strategic Value of your Export Management and Compliance Programs
• Core Elements of an Effective Program
• Steps Required to Build an Export Compliance Program
• Sharing your Strategy with your C-level Superiors
• Key Technology Considerations to Support Your Program

Hosted by American Shipper magazine, this webinar is a ‘must-see‘ if you’re learning how companies implement processes and systems that create a competitive advantage, and drive compliance with the Export Administration Regulations.

View the Free Export Compliance Management Webinar Now!

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ, April 21, 2010 — Management Dynamics, a leading provider of Global Trade Management (GTM) solutions, today announced that Infineon Technologies AG (FSE: IFX / OTCQX: IFNNY) implemented its Export Compliance solution to automate and maintain compliance with international export regulations.

The enterprise-class on-demand solution has enabled Infineon to streamline its process for license determination and sanctioned party screening across its high volume, highly complex supply chain.

Screening over 10,000 daily transactions across 12,000 customers worldwide, Infineon needed a robust and scalable solution to automate compliance with all export regulations for shipping products to foreign countries, as well as the measures to ensure compliance with national and international anti-terrorism regulations.

The company required vendor experience in automated license determination for exports out of multiple countries while adhering to and providing automated US re-export license decisions, especially when exporting dual-use products. Infineon selected Management Dynamics’ Export Compliance solution for its accuracy in resolving trade compliance issues, industry leading Global Trade Content, and scalability.

“The semiconductor industry is global and among the most dynamic industries in the world. Infineon strives to be the most responsive partner for its customers’ needs, while at the same time ensuring compliance with national and international export regulations and sanction programs,” said Wolfgang Keichel, Vice President, Information Technology for Supply Chain Management at Infineon Technologies AG. “Management Dynamics met the complex needs of Infineon in a very efficient and professional way.”

Fully integrated into Infineon’s SAP order management system across all business units, the Export Compliance solution centralizes and manages its international transaction management process including restricted party screening (RPS), export license determination and tracking. Audit trails and complete management reporting provide Infineon with a compliant process that adheres to US, European and Asian government regulations and reduces risks and costs associated with global trade.

In addition to Trade Export, Infineon implemented Management Dynamics’ End-Use Manager, an on-demand solution that generates customized end-use surveys for parties involved in any cross-border transaction, to help its compliance team to comprehensively survey and collect end-use statements from customers, suppliers and employees.

“Many multinational corporations are increasingly exporting to more countries, which comes with greater responsibility to ensure that complex export requirements are met, in particular for exporters of controlled technologies,” said Jim Preuninger, CEO of Management Dynamics. “We are delighted that Infineon Technologies selected our solutions to help manage export compliance and we welcome them into our growing number of customers with operations focused in Europe.”

About Infineon Technologies
Infineon Technologies, headquartered in Neubiberg near Munich, Germany, focuses on the three central challenges facing modern society: Energy Efficiency, Communications and Security. The company offers semiconductors and system solutions for automotive and industrial electronics, chip card and security applications as well as applications in communications.

Color Sensitive Interactive Billboard from milton cj on Vimeo.

Importers and exporters are turning to a new generation of Web-based compliance platforms to help them navigate the complex world of global trade regulation as compliance matures into a core logistics function.  Much of the action in recent months has come as the Importer Security Filing, or 10+2, mandate went into effect.

Indeed, ISF is one of many new rules in the increasingly regulated international trade environment around the world. Governments from all countries are looking to enhance trade security as a measure to counter terrorism, increase product safety, reduce risk, and shift accountability from the government agencies to the importers and exporters.  Importer Security Filing compliance is also unique in that it represents a shift to all-electronic filing.

The ISF is part of Customs’ risk-based approach to trade regulation and is part of a broader push to automation to reduce the agency’s paperwork and free up time for targeted enforcement. “It allows us to do a much better job of determining which shipments should be looked at and how they should be looked at,” [Richard DiNucci, director of the Secure Freight Initiative] said.

Almost lost amid the attention to 10+2 was that it was the first all-electronic trade program promulgated by Customs, with no paper option, pointing the way, perhaps, to the paperless future the trade community and Customs both want. That wasn’t the intent at the outset, DiNucci said, but importers who had not previously automated their trade compliance processes have readily adapted.

ISF is a reminder to shippers that they need to exert close control their own supply chains. For importers already complying with numerous trade mandates and under pressure to reduce costs, the silver lining of 10+2 is that it allows them to identify inefficiencies and eliminate redundancies, resulting in lower risk and fewer problems with Customs.

Although the ISF initiative was initially seen as a costly burden upon importers, the new data can be leveraged into enhancing not just entries into the US but also increasing visibility into trade compliance at all points in the supply chain.

Importers are looking to integrate their trade compliance with transportation or procurement processes in order to increase the overall efficiency of their supply chain while making compliance a priority – not just a means to avoid penalties.

As both the cost and complexity of trade compliance rise, along with the risks of noncompliance, there’s a growing trend among importers to integrate it more closely with core logistics processes, said Nathan Pieri, senior vice president for marketing and product management at Management Dynamics, an East Rutherford, N.J., trade technology provider. The result, he said, is compliance capability that works seamlessly through the supply chain in a way that improves the way shippers meet regulatory mandates and their own information needs.

“Companies want compliance, but also visibility,” he said. “We are seeing that shift and are starting to market and position solutions for that.”

Importers and providers agree compliance is closely tied to supply chain visibility. From a trade compliance standpoint, visibility is needed not just to watch transactions occur, but to be able to gather and report all the relevant data elements.

For the complete read, visit the Journal of Commerce: Visibility into Compliance.

eBook: 10+2 Vital Facts about the Importer Security Filing

The data elements required for 10+2 compliance are part of a growing trend towards increased trade compliance visibility. How can your company turn ISF from a burden into an opportunity? You can start by arming yourself with knowledge!

Download the Importer Security Filing 10+2 eBook

The ISF eBook covers 12 vital facts that importers must be aware of to successfully comply with the ISF, including answers to the following frequently-asked questions:

• What are the basic elements of an ISF Filing?
• How does my company minimize the costs & risks of compliance?
• What problems are companies facing when dealing with their ISFs?
• How can my company leverage ISF requirements to improve trade compliance visibility?

Receive the ISF eBook to learn more about leveraging the data elements of your ISF to enhance trade compliance throughout your supply chain.

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ, January 13, 2010 –

Management Dynamics, a leading provider of global trade management solutions, today announced that Fiesta Gas Grills, one of the largest North American grill manufacturers, has implemented its Supply Chain Visibility solution to support its expanded global procurement operations.

Integrating its sourcing which is primarily from China to its operations in the United States and Canada, the global multi-mode solution has enabled Fiesta to improve customer service, reduce cycle times, better manage suppliers and proactively identify in-transit delivery issues.

“We needed a solution that provided visibility into our manufacturing and distribution process at the supplier level, the ability to generate commercial documents and a platform on which to coordinate all of our global operations. We found the ideal solution with Management Dynamics,” said Peter Perley, COO, Fiesta Gas Grills.

“The Supply Chain Visibility solution could help us to double our business this year without having to add additional staff to our procurement organization.”

Makes you wish it was summer!

Management Dynamics’ Supply Chain Visibility (SCV) solution connects Fiesta Gas Grillswith its multiple overseas suppliers, logistics providers, brokers and carriers on a single global platform to communicate critical purchase order, shipment and inventory information and to support collaborative logistics processes.

With real-time shipment visibility, Fiesta can offer its national retail customers, order tracking with visibility into nine stages of the manufacturing process for better inventory management with less frequency of stock-outs. In addition, armed with essential information on each shipment from its suppliers, Fiesta’s procurement operations can make accurate decisions relating to diverting inventory or resolving bottlenecks.

“Global supply chain teams need real-time visibility to their supply network, yet the realities of today’s global supply chain – multiple trading partners with varying information systems and data definitions – can create major operational challenges for companies,” said Nathan Pieri, SVP Marketing and Product Management for Management Dynamics.

“By moving from a largely manual manufacturing and logistics process to one that is automated infrastructure with Supply Chain Visibility, Fiesta Gas Grills has the control and decision support tools they need to reduce lead times, enhance customer service and increase sales in this difficult economy.”

About Fiesta Gas Grills LLC
Through quality craftsmanship and innovative designs Fiesta has become one of the largest North American grill manufacturers. Fiesta grills are cooking great outdoor meals in over 30 countries around the world.. Whether its our award winning Blue Ember brand, our Fiesta brand or our Grillrite brand our dedication to quality permeates our company. From the design teams through the manufacturing team to the in-house customer service representatives, every member of the Fiesta family is committed to providing each owner of a Fiesta grill “the best grill under the sun” and the ultimate in outdoor cooking experience.

The adoption of low-cost country sourcing strategies has had a significant impact on U.S. businesses – $2 trillion worth of products were imported this year from more than 150 countries, according to U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP).

While these strategies can reduce total product cost, there are many indirect costs that can ultimately counteract the benefits. Total landed costs can only truly be calculated with a comprehensive review of product classifications by country, duties and the applicability of preferential trade programs, as well as the impact of import/export controls.

New technologies – global trade management software,  trade content and e-commerce services – have responded to this market need for optimizing sourcing strategies by effectively automating and synchronizing the procure-to-pay process.

While most ERP and legacy systems provide the foundation of an organization’s data structure, they lack the details to support multi-country sourcing in various countries and with multiple suppliers. Consequently, the information required to accurately determine valuation and duties, and to efficiently file an entry is missing.

A recent Aberdeen Group study found that 65% of companies lack automation to manage their global supply chain. In response to this challenge, organizations are making investments in trade compliance a priority to close the gap.

Global trade management software that integrates global trade content to provide decision support to make accurate landed cost calculations, classify products and manage regulatory controls, and respond to rising regulatory and security requirements, can complement your enterprise technology framework. We have seen innovative companies utilizing global trade management software to effectively navigate the complexities of constantly emerging preferential trade agreements and deliver on the promise of optimal low-cost country sourcing strategies.

Companies can quickly and effectively address the emerging Customs-Trade partnership programs with integrated global trade management software. Proactively screen supply chain partners against restricted party lists; automate the global purchase order management process by centralizing information and collaborating with supply chain partners; provide brokers with easy access to product and trade compliance information to minimize mistakes and expedite entry preparation; and allow suppliers to access POs and generate invoices and Advance Shipping Notices (ASN), required to clear Customs.

Importers must take advantage of these advanced GTM capabilities to reduce the risk of non-compliance and prevent supply chain disruptions in light of the proliferation of new security initiatives. Now is the time to establish the proper procedures, controls, and audit trails to demonstrate reasonable care and support the highest levels of trade compliance.

This article was originally written by Jim Preuninger, CEO of Management Dynamics, Inc for SupplyChainDigest.