Warren Senkowski began his career in international trade back in 2016, when he became a Trade Commissioner in the Pacific Regional Office for Global Affairs Canada in Vancouver. Throughout his career, he’s learned much about the different industries related to trade, and currently, helps companies expand into international markets with a focus on infrastructure and wood products.
Being part of the resurgence of wood as a structural building material
Warren has many favourite stories about his work with Global Affairs Canada, but chief among them are his experiences working with the Vancouver Economic Commission and wood industry associations to promote mass timber and tall wood buildings to an international audience. He notes:
“Seeing the resurgence of wood as a structural building material for high-rise buildings thanks to advocacy and changes in regulations has been fascinating. It is also considered a green building product due to being a carbon sink, and British Columbia offers the full range of products and services to supply tall wood buildings to the world.”
Throughout his work, Warren has not only highlighted the benefits of wood products to the world but he’s also been able to network with CEOs and high-level government officials, connecting his clients to international projects and opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t have known about. “Watching small businesses grow and succeed on a global scale is a point of pride for me,” he says.
Learning from those with experience
After many years of working in international trade, Warren has some great advice for those just starting out.
“Schedule more one-on-one meetings with colleagues and clients that have more experience than you in a particular sector or geographic region to learn about it.”
These practices have served him well throughout his endeavors to encourage the country’s international trade initiatives.
Gaining a deeper knowledge of international trade with the FITTskills courses
Warren wanted to deepen his knowledge of international trade by understanding all the factors that need to be considered at every step of the export journey. To do so, he began taking FITTskills courses finding them to be beneficial to his work in many ways:
“The courses were very well written, clear and easy to understand. They have given me better discussion topics to raise with clients that are beginning to export.”
He also had a favourite course: “I found the Global Value Chain course a great learning experience since I wasn’t aware of Incoterms and will definitely use this knowledge in the future.”
On becoming a CITP
Warren applied for his CITP designation in 2021, achieving it in February of the same year. He believes it will give him a broader toolkit with which to serve companies and new perspectives for analyzing problems and developing solutions.
Of this accomplishment, he says: “I am happy to have reached this milestone.”
With so many accomplishments already, we know that this is only one of many successes in a future filled with international trade achievements.
LinkedIn: Warren Senkowski
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