Some of these topics keep reappearing year after year, due to new developments and their continued place of prominence in the minds of global trade practitioners. This year the atmosphere of volatility and uncertainty continues, leaving many to question the value in forecasting at all. But, as global economist Peter Hall put it:

“Here’s the deal: forecasting is alive and well, if the impact of structural changes is properly understood. Data and cyclical fundamentals together show that the global economy is stronger than news reports have indicated. This will help it to absorb higher interest rates without drastic fallout, and to continue growing for a number of years to come. To do this successfully, more capacity will be needed to deal with rising demand.”  – Watch the full video “Is Forecasting Passe?”

Read on for our 10 2024 trends.

Curious about our past predictions? Check out what we thought 2017-2023 had in store.

• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2023 
• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2022 
• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2021 
• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2020
• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2019
• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2018
• 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2017

1. 2024 global trade outlook “uncertain but pessimistic”

Not exactly a cheerful headline. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) released its Global Trade Update on December 11, projecting a highly uncertain and generally pessimistic outlook for 2024.

Factors contributing to this outlook include ongoing geopolitical tensions, escalating debt, economic fragility, lower demand in developed countries, reduced trade in East Asia, an increase in trade-restrictive measures, commodity price volatility, and lengthening supply chains, especially between China and the United States.

Despite these challenges, the report notes some positive trends in 2023, including a slight increase in trade volumes, indicating resilient global demand for imports, and a $500 billion growth in trade in services, boosted by delayed COVID-19 recovery.

The report also highlighted the impact of “friend-shoring, and a general decrease in the diversification of trade partners. For more on friend-shoring, skip to Trend 6.

The update provides a mixed picture across economic sectors. Looking ahead to 2024, the commodities sector faces continued uncertainty due to regional conflicts and geopolitical tensions. Overall, the report paints a complex and challenging landscape for global trade in the coming year.

2. Inflation and the global economy

The global economy remains fragile and uncertain, revealing and worsening structural weaknesses in an interconnected global system. Again, we need to look to the emerging trend of offshoring, reshoring, and friend-shoring, creating an overall realignment of global trade between rival blocs. This is expected to reshape supply chains, necessitating adjustments in company relationships and giving rise to new competition.

One of the central challenges facing the global economy in 2024 is of course inflation, with projections indicating a global inflation rate of 5.8%, and core inflation not expected to return to target levels of around 2% until 2025, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, variations in inflation rates are anticipated across countries and regions based on economic conditions, policy responses, and external shocks.

While the United States experiences relatively low inflation rates, the global average masks substantial differences among countries and regions. Advanced economies are projected to see inflation below 3.0% in 2024 after averaging 4.6% in 2023. In Canada, inflation is expected to continue to decline, staying between 2% and 3%, stabilizing at 2% toward the end of 2024, according to the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC). Notably, the economic landscape includes a weak Eurozone and a particularly challenged United Kingdom.

Altogether, the realignment of global trade relationships and ongoing inflation challenges are expected to have a significant impact on supply chains, corporate relationships, and competitive dynamics in the coming year and beyond.

3. Cybersecurity risks continue to rise

2023 was a big year for cybersecurity, during which we saw the biggest ever denial of service (DDoS) attack and an increase in cyber attacks with big impacts such as the cyber attack that forced the FAA to ground all flights due to issues with a critical system.

The WEF listed “Widespread cybercrime and cyber insecurity” as the 8^th biggest risk in its Global Risks Report 2023.

Forbes lists 12 predictions for cybersecurity in 2024:

1. Rise In Ransomware Attacks
2. Increased AI-Powered Attacks
3. Flipside: AI As A Cybersecurity Tool
4. IoT Vulnerabilities
5. Electric Vehicle Hack Apocalypse
6. Quantum Computing Threats
7. Data Velocity And Hybrid Infrastructures
8. Need For DevSecOps
9. More Zero Trust Adoption
10. Stricter Data Privacy Regulations
11. Additional Supply Chain Attacks
12. Biometric Authentication Challenges

Ramping up cybersecurity action plans and closely monitoring the latest emerging threats will top many companies’ agendas for 2024.

4. Policy impact after COP28’s first ever “Trade Day”

At the COP28 climate summit in October, global leaders marked the first “Trade Day” as part of the UN’s annual climate conference, underscoring the crucial role of trade in combating climate change. Trade is seen as a powerful tool in addressing climate change, influencing global carbon emissions as well as facilitating the flow of green goods and services essential for the low-carbon energy transition.

The global production and distribution of goods and services contribute to roughly a quarter of all carbon dioxide emissions, according to UNCTAD.

During Trade Day’s launch a roadmap of trade policy options were outlined aiming at an equitable and ambitious response to climate change. Discussions throughout the day centered on leveraging trade policies to decarbonize global supply chains, incentivize businesses toward a net-zero future, secure value chains related to the energy transition, and integrate environmentally responsible practices into trade finance.

Emphasis was made on the need for a multi-lateral approach to creating climate and environment regulations so that small businesses and vulnerable countries aren’t entangled in a complex web of rules.

How this multilateral approach to more equitable and environmentally friendly trade policy will come together remains to be seen, and we will be watching for updates throughout 2024.

5. Trade-restrictive measures on the rise

Returning to UNCTAD’s The Global Trade Update, the report highlights a notable rise in trade-restrictive measures in 2023, particularly non-tariff measures (NTMs). This has been attributed to an increase in industrial policies and added pressure for countries to fulfill their climate commitments. As a result, nations are adopting policies that favor domestic industries and aim to decrease dependence on foreign supply chains.

A recent report from UNCTAD, titled “Trade regulations for climate action,” identified 2,366 NTMs related to climate change, impacting 3.5% of potentially tradable goods and representing 26.4% of global trade. For better or worse, UNCTAD has predicted that these policies are likely to reduce the growth of international trade in the year ahead.

6. Friend-shoring planning in 2022 and 2023 is coming to fruition in 2024

The continue swing toward “friend-shoring” for geopolitical closeness and overall risk reduction has led manufacturers to invest billions in building factories that are either closer to the end consumers or in less risky regions.

This trend continues after years of supply chain upheavals caused by a litany of weather, geopolitical and Covid-10 disruptions. The transportation sector is responding by increasing capacity in regions such as cross-border connections between Canada,U.S. and Mexico connecting to Latin America.

“During 2022, 14% of all U.S. imports by value originated in Mexico, according to data analyzed by Supply Chain Dive. Similarly, U.S. firms have long been financially active in the country, and are responsible for 42% of the total foreign direct investment in Mexico since 2006,” according to SupplyChainDive

There has been a general trend of re-organization of shipping routes enacted over the last couple of years that are now starting to operate at full capacity. Logistics companies are racing to fill the demand. Intermodal logistics services out of Mexico have been steadily growing as the CUSMA trade agreement increased demand in the region and became even more attractive within near-shoring and friend-shoring strategies.

UNCTAD also highlights a marked increase in trade concentration. “There has been an overall decrease in the diversification of trade partners, indicating a concentration of global trade within major trade relationships.”

7. Digital trade growth continues, particularly in Africa and Asia Pacific

Digital trade, comprising all digitally ordered or delivered transactions, is reshaping the global economy.

A significant trend in this digital era is the remarkable growth of digitally delivered services, which have nearly quadrupled in value since 2005, passing the growth of goods and other service exports. In 2022, these digitally delivered services made up 54% of total services exports, offering new opportunities for players in the global market, including micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

Although developed economies lead in exporting digitally delivered services, developing economies, including those in Africa and Asia Pacific, are increasingly participating in this trend. However, least-developed countries (LDCs) are experiencing slower growth in the export of digitally delivered services.

Governance in digital trade is also growing, and significant progress has been made through bilateral and regional trade agreements. Today most FTAs include digital trade provisions. On top of trade rules, regulations addressing cross-border data flows, consumer protection and issues around competition are being addressed through digital trade policy.

We’ll be watching for developments in the technology, standards and trade policy that come into play in 2024.

8. AI in everything

AI is transforming international trade, along with everything else, at a breakneck pace. This is presenting as many challenges as opportunities to businesses facing cybersecurity risks aided by AI, as well as using AI to find and protect against potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

It’s providing a myriad of supply chain technology solutions to improve processes in managing inventory and production, and automating logistics. It is also being used to ease cross-border regulation by automating form filling, checking for documentation errors, and help with compliance checks.

Financial institutions are using AI to assess financial risk and detect potential fraud. Small businesses are benefiting from productivity gains by using AI to generate trade documents, assist with translation, customers service and much more.

As AI is increasingly coming into play in business and in every day life, we will be watching with a particular eye on how it’s being used in trade functions and international businesses.

9. Supply chain volatility is still a huge factor in 2024

At the time of writing, shipping lines are being diverted from routes through the Suez Canal as attacks on cargo ships have recently escalated. At the same time, drought in the Panama Canal region is causing a major bottleneck and disrupting trade flows as shippers look for alternative routes or face delays.

Supply chain disruption has been the name of the game for several years now, with major challenges in capacity amid labour shortages and fluctuating demand during the Covid lockdowns of 2020-2021, geopolitical conflicts and weather-related delays.

While things have now largely stabilized since the pandemic with less congestion and a more normalized supply-demand, new risks such as cyberattacks, continued geopolitical conflicts, and labour shortages and strikes.

Fortunately, there are several tools and new technologies emerging to assist businesses with better plan and risk mitigation including the use of AI tools, digitization of trade and shipping documents, and increased transparency.

10. Gaining new skills most important in getting hired and promoted in 2024

An Employ Recruiter Nation Report shows that 39% of employers plan to focus on internal mobility in 2024. This indicates HR decision-makers’ awareness that in a competitive job market, hiring highly qualified candidates is challenging, necessitating a focus on retaining existing employees.

To do this, there’s a growing trend for organizations to offer career pathing, reducing employee turnover and enabling them to transition into roles that offer challenges and new learning opportunities. This eases the burden on hiring teams, as businesses seek to acquire new skills rapidly through upskilling and internal mobility.

Providing stipends for certifications, mentorship programs, and career development training will be crucial for leaders to empower employees to enhance their skill sets and advance within the organization. While external talent sourcing remains important, prioritizing internal mobility is set to be a major focus in 2024.

At the same time, emphasis will shift from the prestige of past employers on resumes to the importance of individual skills, which also improves diversity, equity, and inclusion. This shift benefits organizations as it broadens the talent pool. Businesses are expected to concentrate on addressing skills gaps which will help achieve the organization’s long-term strategic goals.

The renewed focus on skills is in both technical and leadership competencies, evident in job postings and internal opportunities. Recruiters will continue to prioritize leadership skills, ensuring that the current short-term focus doesn’t lead to leadership skill gaps in the future.

Peter Hall has long been an influential voice in the international business community. He served as VP & Chief Economist at EDC for over a decade. In the FITT Economic Briefing series, Peter explores the current state of the world economy, forecasts and what it all means for today’s exporters.

Here is a recap of the first three installments in the series. For the full picture, watch the videos and be sure to subscribe to FITT’s Youtube channel so that you will be the first to know when there is a new briefing update.

Is forecasting passé? Projections and pandemonium are a strange mix

Released in August, 2023

Chaos is a big theme these days – it appears in books, movies, high-level economic and political discussions, and it has come to permeate our view of things. Whether it’s climate change, technological change, de-globalization, terrorism, populism, pandemics,  demographic change, misinformation, corporate ethical issues, IP, AI or the host of other mega-shifts I’ve left off the list, each individual issue is daunting on its own; collectively, they are something of a nightmare.

The shock, persistence and randomness of these issues has led many to conclude that it’s not really possible to see the future, that the models of the past are broken. That’s probably true if everything has changed. But everything hasn’t changed.

The traditional business cycle is still relevant

We still talk the business cycle and its four phases: growth, peak, recession and recovery. All of these terms are still in our business vocabulary, and still active in reality.

What’s confusing about today’s business cycle is that it doesn’t seem to be following the same cadence as in the past. In recent history, we could count on a recession happening roughly every 10 years. However, dating back to the early 1980s, the world has undergone significant positive shocks that have increased our collective capacity to grow. Things like computing power, telecommunications, the rise of emerging markets, globalization, and myriad related factors and applications have revolutionized and set whole new limits to our growth potential.

It’s really hard to argue that in the big, driver economies there is clear evidence of pre-recession excesses. In fact, there is ample evidence of the exact opposite – a massive anti-bubble of pent-up demand.

If you don’t agree, you’re in good company – but try these arguments on for size: first, the COVID-19 policy-induced recession simply deferred a lot of intended spending. And the money is there for it, from incomes that were just banked to paid-out but unspent stimulus money. Second, prolonged sluggish growth created a huge groundswell of pre-pandemic pent-up spending. Third, at the same time, Americans vastly reduced their personal debt levels. Fourth, the 2008 housing disaster, most evident in the U.S. market, brought chronic underbuilding that created a big supply-demand gap that will take years to fill. In the U.S. and Europe, housing is on the up and up. No wonder the Fed is finding the inflation battle hard.

Canada and the U.S. are facing different scenarios into 2024

Ditto for Canada? Sadly, no. Soaring consumer debt and poor housing fundamentals will not respond well to aggressive interest rate hikes. This, together with higher consumer prices will ensure that Canadian consumers are tighter with their cash. Avoiding a significant domestic recession will be very difficult for Canada to do.

This time around, Canada’s exporters will get a free pass. The relative strength of our key trading partners will likely shift business interest more to an export focus – by extension, heating up demand for international trade expertise.

Not only will exports partly offset the domestic malaise, but that same domestic weakness could well free up labour and plant capacity for the export sector – it’s actually a good moment to keep an eye open for talent that’s currently being shed in the high tech, financial services and skilled-trade firms that primarily serve the internal economy. It’s also a good time to be on the lookout for strategic investment plays.

Here’s the deal

Forecasting is alive and well, if the impact of structural changes is properly understood. Data and cyclical fundamentals together show that the global economy is stronger than news reports have indicated. This will help it to absorb higher interest rates without drastic fallout, and to continue growing for a number of years to come. To do this successfully, more capacity will be needed to deal with rising demand. That will be good for Canadian exports, Canadian business investment, and skilled international trade professionals.

Is Inflation Going the Wrong Way? Analysts say more rate hikes ahead

Released in September, 2023

As you know, businesses, exporters and consumers have already paid a huge price in the Bank of Canada’s inflation fight. The sharply higher cost of borrowing has hit us from all angles – personally, in business investment projects and working capital needs, and in business flows.

Haven’t rate hikes gone far enough? Why aren’t they more effective? What about core inflation?

That’s all the Bank of Canada cares about, right? Partly right – in an inflation fight, they’re looking at everything.

What wasn’t discussed in immediate news flashes over the past few months is that certain key groups in the CPI basket are either deflating or in disinflation territory. Take household operations, furnishing and equipment, for instance. It’s a category that accounts for almost 15% of the CPI basket, and has fallen by an average of 0.5% per month for the past three months. That’s an annualized drop of 5.9%, a pretty serious tumble. Guess what – this category isn’t alone. Clothing and footwear tumbled by 2.8% in the past two months alone. Meanwhile, health care costs have flatlined. Add it up, and about a quarter of the basket is really hard-hit.

Still a lot of interest costs pain ahead

This sure complicates the budgeting process. Businesses are struggling with irrepressible energy and transportation costs, critical for international trade, and a softening domestic market that’s putting downward pressure on selling prices. Weak producer prices are a mixed blessing; input costs are muted, but those selling intermediate goods are in a squeeze.

Monthly increases in mortgage interest costs are still rising at a double-digit pace that has persisted for 14 months, and is almost sure to continue for some months to come. In July alone, growth was at a 24% annualized pace. The pace was actually higher a few months back, but today’s growth is on top of previous gains and is almost sure to barrel on in the coming months. For interest costs, there’s still a lot of pain ahead.

Is the cure worse than the disease?

Now wait a minute; when we’re talking about inflation from interest rate hikes, isn’t that inflation that’s sort of caused by the Bank of Canada? Well, I’m afraid so.

This is one of those strange situations where fighting fire with fire is the remedy. But if that’s the case, shouldn’t the measure of success be the price path of everything but mortgage interest costs? That is, are the fires that are being intentionally started helping us conquer the original fire? Seems reasonable.

That should be easy; mortgage costs are hefty, so tackling what remains should be easy, right? Not quite; hard as it may be to swallow, the weight of mortgage interest costs in the the entire 2022 CPI basket was just 3.46%. But don’t despair; multiply that by the 30.6% year-on-year growth in this category and you add a full percentage point to headline CPI!

Here’s the deal

Monetary policy remains a delicate dance. Rate hikes to date will still be biting down hard on the economy well into next year. Spurious and fleeting price changes will doubtless complicate the exercise, but the Bank’s potion seems to be working. As we’ve seen in the past, too much is lethal.

Navigating Near-shoring: Tempering enthusiasm with caution

Released in November, 2023

It seems everywhere there’s business-talk, near-shoring is one of the key topics. Whether in keynote presentations, strategy meetings or side-bar conversations, there’s lots of buzz.

While serious talk of near-shoring is nothing new, springing to life with SARS-1, business-arresting weather and seismic events and the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, it really took the COVID-19 pandemic to kick it into tangible action. In investment-speak, that’s pretty recent.

It takes time to actually get shovels in the ground, but that seems to be happening in spades in 2023.

What does this mean for exporting businesses in Canada?

Many are welcoming this enthusiastically. They see new investments coming in, with employment opportunities, ribbon-cutting ceremonies and of course tax dollars to follow. And if they’re not coming here, well, they’re setting up shop in a ‘friendlier’ location. Supply chains are more secure. Shipping will be more predictable, and require shorter lead times. In short, it’s much more about us, and it’s keeping the so-called ‘bad guys’ out. But is it all positive?

6 key near-shoring challenges for exporters

Unfortunately, there are a good few things to watch out for:

1. Higher costs

Let’s face it, under globalization, business was organized internationally to minimize costs. Competitive pressures ensured that businesses would make cost-efficient decisions. It’s logical, then, that unwinding this process will result in higher-cost production. The timing isn’t great, as we are already dealing with the first serious inflation outbreak in 31 years. Exporting businesses will have to factor this into their plans, and will have to be creative to remain competitive.

2. Labour shortage

New domestic investments will require workers, and these – at least in Canada, the U.S. and Western Europe are in short supply. As such, these new operations will likely bid up the cost of labour, which no doubt will seep into our own organizations, magnifying wage pressures that are already present.

Canada’s acute shortage of skilled labour also suggests that new investments may well poach skilled labour from existing operations, compromising production from existing facilities, and again, adding to wage pressures for skilled workers.

3. Financing

The timing of new investment activity isn’t great, as it’s clashing with the recent spike in interest rates. While we may welcome all of this new activity, the cost of what it produces will likely have to factor in increased borrowing costs.

4. Location

You may be happy that a key part of your supply chain is moving closer, say from China to Mexico. If you haven’t dealt with Mexico-based businesses before, there’s likely a lot to learn about transactional, taxation and logistics issues, among other things. And even if you are familiar with the new market, there may well be differences that relate to the nature of the goods and/or services in question.

5. Are potential partners really near?

Near-shoring has created a wave of investments from offshore suppliers, in an attempt to be treated as local content. China is particularly active, with anecdotal evidence suggesting strongly that it is investing in North America, especially Mexico, and in places like South Korea which have preferential trade agreements with the U.S.

This new investment is generally being welcomed by the recipient jurisdictions, but if in U.S. policymakers’ eyes this is ultimately viewed as a violation of the spirit of near-shoring, then these investments – and those supplied by them – may well find themselves on the wrong side of Canada’s top customer. With this in mind, remember that USMCA is up for renewal in 2026.

6. Politics vs business

Businesses make investment decisions based on long-term dynamics, given the amounts being committed and the need to generate shareholder value. Politics is often on a shorter horizon, and can be fickle. When it finally dawns on consumers that they will ultimately pay the bill for this, in addition to current inflation pressures and higher interest rates, they may sour on near-shoring.

At the same time, businesses need to be aware that higher-cost repatriated investment means that there are still lower-cost operations elsewhere that could well threaten future competitiveness. They, too, may lose enthusiasm for near-shoring. Best to keep an open mind and remain flexible.

Here’s the deal

Past promises to re-shore, near-shore or re-localize supply chains weren’t honoured for a reason. Businesses simply weren’t convinced that the long-run costs of disruption justified a substantial re-working of their global production networks. Political pressure and security concerns have convinced many that it’s time to make good on the promises.

Whether or not the changes stick remains to be seen. Where national security is concerned, near-shoring is here to stay. For the rest, time alone will tell. As near-shoring is essentially a policy in flux, it is critical to keep an eye on the progression of the issue in the coming months.

Don’t miss a FITT Economic Briefing update. Subscribe to FITT’s Youtube Channel and turn on notifications.

2022 may be best summed up by the word “hybrid”. As the world largely moved on from lockdowns and social distancing, many workplaces moved on to hybrid models allowing their employees the flexibility to pivot with these changing times.

There were mass layoffs, and yet the hiring landscape remained competitive. Many of us, both personally and professionally, saw a “return to normal” while also navigating a continually challenging economic and business environment.

Similarly, FITT saw the continued value in offering flexibility, with an uptick in learners taking the FITTskills program through our educational partners in an in-class, instructor-led setting – while still seeing a large portion of learners progressing through the program through the self-led online option.

No matter how they earned their knowledge and experience in international business, an impressive number of individuals from a wide range of sectors, job roles, and organizations put in the work to achieve their professional goals by enhancing their skills and earning FITT credentials in 2022.

During the 2022 calendar year:

• 19,055 FITTskills courses and workshops were issued to learners
• 2,239 FITT digital badges were shared online
• 247 people achieved their FITT Certificate in International Trade, bringing the all-time total of FITT Certificate Holders to 7,362
• 359 people achieved their FITT Diploma in International Trade, bringing the all-time total of FITT Diploma Holders to 5,725
• 235 individuals achieved the CITP designation, bringing the all-time total of individuals who have been certified by FITT to 1,842

When FITTskills participants, graduates and CITP|FIBPs share their stories of why they took FITTskills training or took steps to earn FITT credentials, we get consistent feedback that reinforces the value of them to individuals at all stages of their careers – from students to CEOs.

For some, attending the in-class training led to valuable networking connections, mentorships and  business opportunities.

Many said the CITP designation gave them the confidence and credibility to go after their dream job, or land a new contract with a big client.

Others were looking to equip their teams with the specific skills and knowledge needed to successfully achieve their organization’s international business goals.

CITP earners represent diverse roles connected by common goals

In 2022 235 individuals were awarded the designation that stands as the symbol of both competency and credibility for global business professionals, bringing the all-time total of individual earners to 1,842.

This cohort of earners represents 200+ different organizations from small, medium, and large-sized companies in the private sector, government departments, regional export offices, and financial institutions – including:

Mustang Survival, ClimeCo, Gryd, Liveable Cities (LED Roadway Lighting), Vitalus Nutrition Inc, Arc’teryx, UPS, Newlook Eyewear, Lutron Electronics, Erickson Coaching International, Right at Home Realty Brokerage, Magna International, Delmar International, HSBC, RBC Royal Bank of Canada, Desjardins, Guaranty Trust Bank Limited, TD Canada Trust, Scotiabank, EDC, Global Affairs Canada, Canadian Commercial Corporation, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the U.S. Commercial Service, The Turks and Caicos Island Government, Export Development Canada, and many more.

The breadth of sectors, business size, and job roles represented by CITPs are connected by the common thread of doing business beyond borders and proves the value of the designation for businesses trading internationally.

Every year we love to see the variety in roles that the latest cohort of CITPs inhabits. The group of earners from 2022 includes policy analysts, researchers, business development & sales managers, investment officers, loan service managers, customs brokers, procurement specialists, international business consultants, trade commissioners, marketing directors, border services officers and many others – from entry level to C-suite executives.

All of these professionals in sectors ranging from policy analysis to marketing and procurement see the importance of proving they have a thorough grasp of international trade processes, a commitment to global trade, and a dedication to ethical business practices and ongoing professional development.

More than a third of FITT Diploma earners went on to achieve the CITP

In 2022 an impressive 359 individuals earned the FITT Diploma in International Trade – a credential presented to individuals who have successfully completed the FITTskills program, through FITTskills online, through one of our educational partners, or through our portfolio submission process.

Earning the FITT Diploma meets the educational requirement for the CITP|FIBP designation for those applying through Pathway 1 (FITT Diploma Pathway).

We are thrilled to see 35% of 2022 diploma holders went on to earn the CITP designation. FITT Diploma earners have demonstrated their knowledge in each key category that, working together, complete international trade transactions.

This full picture of international trade prepares individuals to work effectively with colleagues and clients across the full spectrum of trade activities and sectors.

In 2022 there are more than 50 companies and 100 different job roles represented by FITT Diploma earners, from finance to customs, and large corporations (Home Depot, J.D. Irving Limited, BGRS, ATB Financial, Héroux-Devtek, and more), SMEs (Crank Software, Glenview Pharma, Fisher King Seafoods, Kelford Inc.) Government departments and regional trade offices (World Trade Centres, Toronto Region Board of Trade, STEP, Natural Resources Canada, Ontario Government, Caribbean Export Development Agency, and more) financial institutions, and many others.

FITT Certificate earners are continual learners

For those looking to begin or fill gaps in their international trade knowledge, earning the FITT Certificate in International Trade is a fantastic place to start. This credential is presented to individuals who’ve successfully completed any 3 FITTskills courses, or the equivalency thereof. Earning this certificate proves your knowledge in some of the key skills areas of global business.

In 2022 we proudly presented 247 individuals with this credential, from more than 60 different companies or organizations, and representing 80+ unique job roles. While earning the FITT Certificate is an accomplishment in itself, many didn’t stop there, with 46% of them going on to earn the FITT Diploma and 21% achieving the CITP designation in the same year.

The drive to grow and excel in their careers and businesses spurred 2022’s FITT credentials earners to gain valuable knowledge, skills and prestigious industry-recognized achievements.

We offer our heartfelt congratulations to all of the credential earners and celebrate their commitment to their international trade careers and professional development.

For the seventh year in a row, we have earmarked a short list of what we humbly predict to be the most impactful evolving trends in global trade for the year ahead.

So how do we choose these 10 focus areas? It comes from a combination of research, monitoring of news and developments at the time leading up to publication, and an assessment of what seems to be most likely to affect global trade practitioners and import-export businesses in the coming months. We comb through social media trends, news trends, track the developments of the biggest economic and business trends from the past year, and consult with some knowledgeable CITPs to compile the list.

And even with all of that prep work, we often get it wrong. Because one of the most thrilling and nail-biting aspects of international business is the unpredictability of it.

For instance, you might be amused to note that our predictions for 2020 had no mention of the small matter of a worldwide pandemic and economic crisis  — in fact we predicted a rather uneventful year:

“This year looks to be less explosive, with fewer conflicts but a general slowdown in trade growth.”

At least we weren’t alone in failing to predict it.

What may be most appropriate in summarizing what to expect in the global business environment for the foreseeable future is to revive a popular acronym originally coined in 1987: VUCA

• V = Volatility
• U = Uncertainty
• C = Complexity
• A = Ambiguity

In fact, let’s get this out of the way from the start—the first trend we’re going to explore is the expected sharp downturn in global trade growth in 2023. While there is a lot to be hopeful and excited about in the year ahead (growth in renewables, skills-focused hiring, fintech developments), there are also some persistent global challenges that will carry over from 2022, including sustained inflation, high interest rates and energy costs, and the continuing effects from the war in Ukraine.

Read on for our 10 2023 trends.

Curious about our past predictions? Check out what we thought 2017-2022 had in store.

10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2022 

10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2021 

10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2020

10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2019

10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2018

10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2017

1. Global Trade Growth Slowing in 2023

In October, the World Trade Organization (WTO) readjusted its projection for merchandise trade growth from 3.4% to 1% for 2023 among continuing geopolitical tensions, inflation and lower global demand. The UNCTAD agreed, lowering their projections for 2023 in their latest Global Trade Update, published in December.

EDC published their annual year-end Trade Confidence Index, reporting that trade confidence has declined sharply for Canadian businesses over the past year and continues to decrease among concerns over rising interest rates and a looming global recession.

What’s particularly interesting about EDC’s findings is that of the 1,600 businesses surveyed for the report, a majority (62%) are still considering diversifying their markets and entering new international markets.

So, it seems that while there are challenges to be faced in the year ahead, trade remains resilient.

We’ll be watching to see if the projections pan out.

2. N-Tier Transparency

The N-Tier supply chain is made up of the suppliers that supply your suppliers. Put more plainly, it is the network of suppliers that provide components and services to “tier 1 suppliers,” the ones you directly engage as the buyer. This extra level of removal is what makes is so difficult to obtain a full picture of your entire supply chain from end-to-end.

Getting the full picture of N-Tier suppliers is key in risk management; this became apparent during the supply disruptions caused by the pandemic. Advanced risk management involving full transparency of higher tiers is becoming more common in the face of potential disruptions, such as natural disasters caused by climate change, political upheaval, and future health crises.

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) regulations are also becoming more prevalent and ramping up within both investors and governing bodies around the world. We see this continuing to evolve in 2023 and impact the way companies build and track their supply chains.

Having full transparency of all tiers is becoming more important for companies who want to stay on the right side of fines and other enforcement measures on the horizon.

However, this is still substantially difficult for companies to obtain as most risk management solutions are adept at identifying risks within the first tier of the supply chain but not those existing in the “N-Tier” level. In fact, in one recent McKinsey survey only 2% of companies surveyed had full visibility of their third tier or higher.

“That matters because many of today’s most pressing supply shortages, such as semiconductors, happen in these deeper supply chain tiers.” – Steve Banker, Forbes

Just under half had a full picture understanding of their first-tier suppliers and the potential risks in those environments. Solutions that can provide companies with a deeper understanding of their N-Tier suppliers through sophisticated analytics and AI are understandably increasing in demand, and this is something we will be watching develop as the year goes on.

3. ESG Regulations

You can’t talk about supply chain in 2023 without talking about Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG). The social and environmental impacts of supply chains have been making headlines and leading trends in the industry for years now. We included increasing regulations around sustainability and emissions in our Trends article from 2018, for instance.

In 2023, we seem to have reached a critical mass where ESG can’t be ignored. This January, the Germany Supply Chain Due Diligence Act came into effect in the fourth largest economy in the world. This legislation requires businesses to ensure that their entire end-to-end supply chains are free from environmental and human rights violations.

Gone are the days where companies can claim ignorance for what is happening in the higher tiers of their supply chains.

Investors and self-governing agencies are increasingly forming their own actionable ESG regulations as well. If that’s not enough motivation yet, consumers and employees are also putting the pressure on for companies to be more ESG focused.

KPMG provided three points of action that companies can take to ensure their supply chains are best equipped to track, report, and optimize for ESG:

• Operationalize your ESG strategy by aligning the objectives of each function within your business including Finance, HR, IT, Operations and Commercial. Ensure that there is internal collaboration and alignment with each function accessing and tracking the same ESG data.
• Capture real-time operational data along your supply chain for measurement and reporting of ESG matters.
• Build end-to-end visibility of the supply chain to see where your goods move, the organizations that are moving them, and their sustainability credentials. With this insight, make active decisions about your partners to reduce your scope 3 total.

4. Increasingly sophisticated cyber threats

As supply chains integrate more technology into their systems, they are also introducing more opportunities for criminals to exploit vulnerabilities and hack into them. Alongside the adoption of IoT devices, or equipment like barcode readers, cyber criminals are getting more sophisticated and able to cause breaches in your company or your suppliers’ data.

To compound this, companies are also combining their data into centralized databases and systems. This makes a lot of sense from an operational standpoint, but causes further risks when these systems are breached.

According to a recent KPMG study, 60% of companies surveyed said that their supply chains were leaving them vulnerable to a cyber attack.

To combat these threats, organizations need to conduct thorough cyber-risk assessments and ensure that any suppliers in their chains do the same.

According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology,  “Cybersecurity in the supply chain cannot be viewed as an IT problem only. Cyber supply chain risks touch sourcing, vendor management, supply chain continuity and quality, transportation security and many other functions across the enterprise and require a coordinated effort to address.”

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security provides this approach organizations can use to assess and mitigate risks within their supply chains. We’ll certainly be keeping an eye on developing solutions to mitigate cyber security risks in 2023.

5. Friend-shoring leading to onshoring

Coming off of three years of supply chain disruption and instability, an environment of uncertainty continues into 2023. Port congestion and high shipping rates are expected to continue well into the year. Food, energy, and technology supply chains are projected to be impacted by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and ongoing tensions between China, Taiwan and the U.S.

The long-term aspect of continued disruption is causing many organizations to start bringing manufacturing closer to home. Even prior to the 2019 COVID-related supply chain disruptions began, “near-shoring” and “friend-shoring” were gaining momentum as tactics to protect against the political and climate change disruptions already affecting global supply chains.

Friend-shoring will still be a popular strategy in 2023 bringing production out of riskier environments and into “friendlier” regions, reducing the risks offered by geopolitical instability.

However, risks of friend-shoring do include ESG-related compliance issues, so any new manufacturing location would have to be carefully vetted.

To reduce risks further, onshoring will be another popular option in 2023. Despite the higher costs of production that often come from bringing it onshore, reducing disruption risks seems to be a worthwhile endeavor for many companies and even countries. For example, the U.S. took a big step forward in onshoring crucial technology inputs by passing the CHIPS and Science Act which increased investment in semiconductor production on U.S. soil.

6. Manufacturing continues to leave China

According to the Economic Times,

“In 2023, companies will evaluate lead times and the cashflow impact of potential geopolitical conflicts and focus on building alternative options for raw material and component supply, to reduce an overdependence on individual countries, and distribute risk.”

Tensions and disruption from China, in particular, over the past few years, has led many Western companies to divert their supply chains away from the country to nearby neighbours that pose fewer risks.

In late 2022, the U.S. actioned their CHIPS and Science Act, to bolster the country’s domestic semiconductor capacity and  at the same time set some tough export controls in an effort to slow down China’s chip manufacturing industry. Chinese exports of high-tech products dropped 23.6% in November 2022.

China’s neighbours have been picking up a lot of this manufacturing business.

“Meanwhile, countries, like Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia are grabbing markets China is ceding. Vietnamese exports, for example, rose 23% year-on-year to $185 billion over the first six months of 2022. Malaysia’s outward shipments increased 21% to $294.5 billion over the first 10 months of 2022.” – WITA.org 

China is also importing fewer commodities as their manufacturing export market falls.

China is likely to react to the U.S.’ export controls by putting up trade barriers of its own. All in all, it looks like 2023 will continue to be a volatile time for trade in this region as tensions remain high. We’ll be watching to see how things develop.

7. Continuing war in Ukraine

Last year at this time, we were looking ahead at what we hoped would be a return to a more stable trade environment with gradual easing of the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 saw a new wave of instability arrive in the form of sanctions, higher energy prices, and supply chain disruption on a global scale.

It’s hard to predict how the conflict will unfold in the year ahead, but one thing many global economists and trade experts agree on is continued disruption and knock-on effects including high inflation, commodity price surges, food shortages, and energy constraints exacerbating the probability of a global recession in 2023.

8. Global Renewable Market continues growth

Over the past year, costs of fossil fuels rose while renewable energy sources continued to become more affordable.

“The world is facing a simultaneous inflation crisis, national security crisis, and climate crisis, all caused by our dependence on high cost, insecure, polluting, fossil fuels with volatile prices,” says Professor Doyne Farmer, author of a recent study detailing the forecasted costs of the global energy system.

He states that research shows the costs of renewable energy continues to trend down and will become cheaper than fossil fuels in the near future across all industries.

BDO Global has provided its predictions for the Global Renewable Industry in 2023, including the following highlights:

The future of solar and wind power is bright – Solar capacity will continue to grow over the next several years—surpassing a terawatt of global solar power generation by 2023. Wind power will also continue to grow, with increased storage capabilities developed specifically for on and offshore wind, helping to improve the economics and productivity of such projects.

The energy convergence continues – Natural resources companies, from mining to oil and gas, will continue to invest in clean or renewable energy technology, including carbon capture, utilisation and sequestration—both to diversify their portfolios and reduce their corporate carbon footprints.

Cleantech investments soar –  Whether called cleantech or climate-tech, the regulatory, economic and scientific impetus for these technologies will see $600 billion dollars in global private investment by 2023.

9. Digitization continues to drive trade finance developments

Despite the adoption of blockchain technology by global financial institutions in recent years, there is room for further growth, according to Carl Wegner, CEO of Contour. Digitizing trade documents such as bills of lading has the potential to save billions of dollars in costs to organizations and improve efficiency and collaboration.

In place of cryptocurrencies, the “real economy” is set to make a resurgence after the crypto market took a two trillion dollar dive in 2022. Central banks in 114 countries are creating and are set to distribute their own digital currencies (CBDCs), both to transfer funds between commercial banks and for the use of the general public.

Digitalization in trade finance is continuing to develop and we will be watching to see how it impacts trade transactions and processes this year.

10. The future of work continues to be flexible and skills-focused

In the wake of the “great resignation,” labour shortages, the “quiet quitting” trend and a new generation moving into higher-level positions, the workplace continues to evolve in 2023.

Many offices are moving back to in-person work or hybrid models this year, but workers are still demanding flexibility and remote-work options. So, we can’t expect a “return to normal” or anything resembling the pre-pandemic model.

“New technologies seem set to usher in changes to the way workers are surveilled and monitored as they go about their daily activities, either remotely or in centralized workplace environments. Managing this balance between expectations of flexibility and a need for accountability will be a key challenge that employers and managers will face in the coming 12 months.” Bernard Marr, Forbes

So, companies will need to continue to balance flexibility— which has been shown to increase productivity and worker satisfaction— and things like security and tools to carry out reasonable tracking and surveillance for project management.

The hiring and recruiting process continues to evolve as well. More candidates available for remote-work opportunities, but in many industries, labour shortages persist this year.

Digital credentials are popping up with increasing regularity on digital CVs and LinkedIn profiles, and can be a useful tool for both hiring managers and job seekers, acting as a quick and easy way to verify skills and experience at a glance.

As recruiters increasingly shift to a “skills-first” hiring approach, digital credentials will continue to aid the process, making verifiable skills front and centre.

Whether you sell goods or services or both, there may be tremendous opportunities for you to grow your business outside of the domestic border. In fact, going global can make you more efficient, make you more competitive and make you stronger.

However, if exporting were easy, every company would do it, so it’s crucial to understand what’s involved.

During this series, we will provide an outline of some of the risks of going and growing globally, as well as a high level “A to Z” of exporting – everything from assessing your company’s export readiness to planning and researching market entry, finance and marketing.

FITT experts:

Daniel Lewis CITP, Founder – Daniel’s Chai Bar, Author, International Speaker

Marvin Hough CITP, President – MIRA Limited

Lora Rigutto Vigliatore CITP, Loyalty and Engagement Manager – FITT, International Business Instructor

Assessing your company’s export readiness

Feasibility of International Trade

When we talk about feasibility of international trade we’re principally referring to three broad components:

• Export readiness – does your venture have the resources required to venture into foreign markets?
• Choosing your target market – where should you start?
• Suitability of your products and services – is your product or service suitable for your target market, or do you need to modify it in some way?

The first step in assessing your export readiness is to do a SWOT analysis – you must assess your strengths and weaknesses and figure out your gaps.

The second step is asking yourself those tough questions – why are you exporting, who is going to get the work done, and are you really ready?

Daniel, can you tell us about your company’s journey to importing and exporting, and how you determined when you were ready to go global?

The thing I like to say is that we started exporting accidentally, and then we learned how to do it the right way, so a lot of what I learned was by mistake.

When we started our company, our focus was on how we could positively impact the community that we’re in, which was working. But then it got to a point where the people that we were impacting in our local market well, they have family that visits from international locations, and when they would experience our brand and our products we started to hear the questions like “do you ship to the U.S., to Australia, Japan?”

When you keep getting those questions then you start to ask, is there business potential elsewhere? That’s what started to happen for us. We started to sense a demand, especially from the U.S., for our teas and we had to start thinking about how to get it there. So we had to figure out packaging and how to ship it – what were the documents that we needed.

We made a lot of mistakes in those early stages, until we started to learn from those experiences and get our feet on solid footing.

We also started to learn that in the U.S., which became one of our big markets, it’s very different than Canada. People are different, the buying decisions and motivations are different, and we couldn’t just copy paste what was working with our Canadian market. Eventually we tapped into resources like FITT to learn and refine that process.

What were some of those gaps that you had to address before you could make that leap to a new market?

 One of the biggest gaps for us was, from our company’s inception, we branded ourselves as a company who uses tea as a tool to impact people’s lives in a positive way, so in our marketing we put our mission before our product. And that resonated very well here in Canada.

But when we went to an international market, like the US, they didn’t really know us, and that connection was not the same. We had to find a strategic way of turning that around and creating a product focus. It was the complete opposite of how we were branding and marketing ourselves originally.

Marvin, how do you assess or help your clients evaluate their own export readiness?

You know in Canada, we have about a million SMEs and only about 4% are actually exporting. And out of those about three quarters sell into the United States. Going global for an entrepreneur or startup SME is really challenging, but it’s also really There are three pieces of good news I want to share:

1. There are more groups available now to help entrepreneurs than ever before. FITT and Startup Canada are both excellent examples.
2. The digital revolution has created an easier path into markets.
3. Startups can be very flexible and agile and being able to pivot and change the way you’re operating is really, really important.

I put my clients through a readiness checklist that can be quite extensive. I’ll mention some of the points that I think are really important that companies look at. Number one is management’s commitment to the export field.

I’ve seen companies say they’re ready and they want to go at it, but two months later, they come back and another project has taken priority. To tackle international markets, companies have to be sure they’re committed from the very top.

The second part is foreign market research. You can do a lot of this online now, which makes this much more accessible.

Thirdly, having the financing setup and support is important, whether you have to adapt your products or just completing an order. So many companies I’ve seen are stretched too thin, and they’ve got an export order but they lack that risk management.

As you enter a market you’ll often be relying on an agent, partner, or distributor. It’s so important to do the full analysis and fully vet your partners.

There are many other items on the export readiness checklist – from getting the right freight forwarder to understanding the promotional material requirements in your target market.

A great resource I’ll point out is on the Trade Commissioner website  – there’s an export readiness quiz that you can complete to assess all these readiness factors.

And if you don’t have an answer to some of those questions, or the answer is no, then consult with consultants, and CITPs, and seek training resources like the workshops and courses provided by FITT. The Situational Analysis workshop and Feasibility of International Trade course in particular can help on the preparedness side.

EDC, is also a good resource for companies that are assessing if they’re ready to export.

But as mentioned, sometimes an export order comes out of the blue and all of a sudden there’s an order coming in from a new market. That can be an exciting and overwhelming situation, but it’s also a great learning experience because startups have the agility to learn and adapt quickly. Daniel and his company are a great example of that.

You’re never too small to start exporting, you just have to know where your gaps and tap into the right resources that can help you.

How do you determine which markets to start exporting to?

I caution companies to get focused on their target market and don’t take on too many markets at the same time. That can often be a recipe for disaster.

As mentioned, many companies start exporting to fulfill orders that have come to them through e-commerce or a random request in their inbox. But there can be a tremendously steep learning curve.

The vendor may not be set up to ship internationally and may not understand customs procedures or local requirements for labeling and packaging.

So, if we take that strategic approach to market expansion, are there certain types of markets that are good testing grounds for first time exporters?

Many Canadian businesses start their international expansion in the United States where there’s cultural affinity and we conduct business in similar ways.

One resource that comes to mind is called the New Exporters to Border States (NEBS) program run by the Ontario government which helps businesses who are exploring the U.S. market. If a company is going through the readiness stage, they can go to the U.S. for a two day program and get all of the details about crossing the border from currency exchange to tax and legal issues.

Through this program the businesses can gain that knowledge firsthand, they can for example, go to Buffalo for two days and meet with all of the officials who can help facilitate the logistics in that market.

There’s a plethora of information online through government websites here in Canada, and I find industry associations have really good information on foreign markets for companies looking at getting into a sector.

But then there’s always those unexpected orders that come and companies have to evaluate them. Having somebody focused on the research is very important, whether that’s an internal employee or engaging a consultant to do that.

Hiring a research consultant can be extremely important, in my experience, for a smaller company.

Daniel, you mentioned, you started your company’s exporting journey in the United States because of unplanned opportunities to fulfill orders from word of mouth.

Was exploring that market also a strategic choice or was it just because of that unexpected demand coming in?

I was not strategic at all, I was just reacting to those opportunities. And that’s a place you don’t want to find yourself in when it comes to exporting.

So often in business, you have this checklist and this plan, and then boom! Something else just side tracks it. That’s what happened to me in many cases, and I was not necessarily ready.

For example, I’m also an author and with my book sales, I said “I’m open to the world!”

I learned you have to be careful of just saying that you’re open to selling internationally, because I was selling my book for $9 and I got an order from Vienna. Long story short, by the time I shipped that and got it to the customer it cost me $85. It was either that, or they had to wait like five months to get the book.

Logistically for you, you need to know if you are entering the best market from a sales and marketing standpoint. Explore where there are trade agreements between your home country and that market or that country that you’re trading into.

We didn’t know about the HS codes that we needed to declare and put on our packaging, and we got hit so hard with this influx of information that we weren’t prepared for.

If I was to do it again, I would have found people who have experience – and I would have started with FITT courses and the Trade Accelerator Program.

These kinds of resources have helped to make me aware of the things that I don’t know about exporting and importing.  And that’s what I didn’t do before, so if I was to do it over again, making that commitment from a management standpoint to do the research, learn about the shipping logistics.

Start by getting training, attending workshops virtually, doing your online research, reading books – it will all make you feel so much more ready and give you a psychological confidence to start exporting.

Before I did that, I was getting to a place where I didn’t want orders to come in anymore, because I felt like I was just going to mess it up. But once you feel ready, you get more aggressive in doing business and getting sales and facilitating those orders. Then your customer service kicks in and that’s when business starts to thrive.

Something that sometimes happens when companies enter big markets – it’s that idea that a big country like the U.S. or Mexico is one market. It’s a fallacy, I’ve seen so many companies think that they’re into the market and really they’ve only got a little bit of a foothold in a particular city. We have to realize that there are difference markets within these big countries from region to region and different cities. That has to be explored as part of your analysis.

I’ve been teaching here at the Telfer School of Management and in the MBA programs in many universities. Within these types of programs the students often undertake international research projects for companies as a learning experience. These can be a sort of a free service, and a great resource that I would highly recommend to assist with your market research and analysis.

Stay tuned for the next article in the Ready. Set. Export. series – “Adapting your products and services”

By now we’ve all experienced the effects of supply chain disruption that began with the pandemic in late 2019/early 2020. Between worker shortages, inventory shortages, high costs, long wait times and unpredictability, the challenges, for those doing business across borders especially, have been incredibly difficult to manage.

As part of Startup Global (Startup Canada’s annual  program empowering founders to start their business with a global mindset) FITT teamed up with them for this fascinating and informative Twitter chat on how to build a resilient supply chain – no easy task.

We brought 6 CITPs on board to share their knowledge and experience, and the insights were too great to limit to Twitter. So for those that missed it live, here are the conversation highlights.

CITP Panel:

• Greg Gerritson, CITP, Global Logistics and Trade Compliance Manager at Phoenix Technology Services
• Rahim Mohtaram, CITP, Supply Chain Management Program Coordinator at triOS College
• Audrey Ross, CITP, Trade Compliance Specialist at Orchard Custom Beauty
• Clarecia Christie, CITP, Professor International Business, Marketing and Management Studies at Algonquin College
• Igor Chigrin, CITP, Senior Business Advisor, International Expansion at
  BDC
• Veronica Abella, CITP|FIBP, Bachelor’s Degree in International Business

In your own business or as a customer of a business, what was your biggest supply chain challenge?

The biggest supply chain challenges nowadays are various risks (political, currency exchange rates, shutdowns, delays), cost pressure (raw material and energy costs, logistics freight,), and digital transformation requirements. #StartupChats

— Rahim Mohtaram (@RahimMohtaram) May 25, 2022

A1 – adjusting to
1) the new timing, ex. no more last minute bookings, have to book ocean 5 weeks in advance. Ports taking waaaayyyy longer to offload.
2) the amount of chasing! Nothing is on track, every project constantly monitored. #StartUpChats pic.twitter.com/WPxHAFrIx4

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

#StartupChats #CITP pic.twitter.com/Q4nOuSgmXr

— FITT (@FITTNews) May 25, 2022

When it comes to international business and your supply chain, how can you protect yourself?

A2 – Understanding true “landed costs” and associated supply chain intricacies within your business. #startupchats

— Greg Gerritsen (@greg_gerritsen) May 25, 2022

A2 From B2B perspective there are a number of risk mgmt tools to tap into such as export credit insurance, maritime insurance, inventory loss insurance, etc. @FITTNews #StartupChats

— Clarecia Christe CITP ?? (@ClareciaChriste) May 25, 2022

Ensure your contracts & documents are accurate, precise and compliant.
Now is the time to get super detail-oriented bc you cannot afford the extra charges for storage or delays.
Control what you can control – the precision of your paperwork. #StartupChats

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

Selecting reliable suppliers, early involvement of professional 3PL service providers, cargo insurance (Clause A plus war & SRCC), hedging, redesigning supply chain network, nearshoring or reshoring mixed with offshoring. #StartupChats

— Rahim Mohtaram (@RahimMohtaram) May 25, 2022

Let’s talk about Incoterms. What are they and how do they help entrepreneurs mitigate risk?

They regulate where the costs and risks transfer between the buyer and the seller in the international shipping transactions. So, you need to know incoterms to know when you start being responsible for the loss or damage of the goods in transit. #StartupChats

— Igor Chigrin (@winglobal_igor) May 25, 2022

The @iccwbo #Incoterms® rules are used in contracts to clearly communicate the obligations, costs, and risks associated with the transportation and delivery of goods, providing clarity for sellers and buyers and helps facilitate trade.
Learn more: https://t.co/Rs0PAq4F2n

— FITT (@FITTNews) May 25, 2022

Understanding INCOterms is crucial in import / export biz. Obvi, you want to choose the one w/ most advantage to you… but then you have customers & DDP is a real value add. You just have to ensure (& insure!) you plan for the costs & risks involved. #StartupChats

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

What problems are small businesses currently facing when taking their business internationally and exporting to new markets?

Recruiting experienced traders, finding a practical method for selecting the right target markets, finding a suitable and reliable agent, distributor, or partner in the target market, negotiating and drafting a comprehensive contract, and logistics coordination. #StartupChats

— Rahim Mohtaram (@RahimMohtaram) May 25, 2022

Finding and marketing to the right buyers or customer segments is also a problem, on top of all others. #StartupChats

— Igor Chigrin (@winglobal_igor) May 25, 2022

High costs! Freight rates being just one example.#StartupChats #SupplyChain #SME #CITP pic.twitter.com/jrxHreNlsJ

— FITT (@FITTNews) May 25, 2022

A4 Understanding industry regulations of international markets which affects their goods accessing the market, using incorrect HS Codes, assuming an homogenous culture, not using a customs broker. @FITTNews #StartupChats pic.twitter.com/1CxbSojCJP

— Clarecia Christe CITP ?? (@ClareciaChriste) May 25, 2022

A4. Generally what I see is an assumption that conditions, market and regulations will be similar to the home country. Not doing your homework. Also- – not bringing on paid advice (legal, financial, trade compliance) early enough. #StartupChats

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

A4- Marketing plan (online?), Financing (distribution, landed costs) and reverse logistics (returns/damages, customer service). #startupchats

— Greg Gerritsen (@greg_gerritsen) May 25, 2022

The pandemic has clearly shown the interconnectedness of our global supply chains. How do you navigate difficult conversations between all your different stakeholders?

Having a long-term view, creating cross-functional teams, early involvement of customers and suppliers in projects, honest and open negotiation and creative problem-solving technics, and strategic cooperation with preferred partners. #StartupChats

— Rahim Mohtaram (@RahimMohtaram) May 25, 2022

A5. Have them early and come with solutions.
It is a reality that you will not always have awesome convos with your customers. Be responsible, honest and get it over with so you can move forward together. #StartupChats

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

A5 – Being aware of cultural and business process differences in different regions and educating yourself so to have productive dialogue to overcome challenges, and help achieve goals. #startupchats

— Greg Gerritsen (@greg_gerritsen) May 25, 2022

A big part of being resilient is having a support system and strategies to overcome hard times. For supply chain issues, what might this look like for entrepreneurs?

A6 As we are in the #digitalage Entrepreneurs have new tools to use tracking shipments and communicating with 3PL partners; her the use of AI, Blockchains is playing a big part in managing some supply chain issues @FITTNews #StartupChats

— Clarecia Christe CITP ?? (@ClareciaChriste) May 25, 2022

A6. It’s connections and knowing who is in the community. @Startup_Canada @FITTNews @wekh_pcfe @ExportDevCanada @TCS_SDC , Chambers of Commerce, @OWITintl etc. #StartupChats

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

A6 – Relationships with trusted experts and resources who understand your vision and business. #StartupChats

— Greg Gerritsen (@greg_gerritsen) May 25, 2022

Knowing the impact supply chain issues have had in the past few years, will you structure your team differently in the future? Who can help entrepreneurs tackle these challenges?

A7. If you haven’t already adopted some digital tools and moved away from excel spreadsheets – the time is now.
Also- you can’t copy & paste someone else’s supply chain design. We all tried copying toyota JIT model… #StartupChats

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

Yes, We need cross-functional and cross organizational teams including all links in our supply chain, from third-tier suppliers to end-users. @FITTNews, @StartupsCanada, and @ExportDevCanada can help with their professional advice. #StartupChats

— Rahim Mohtaram (@RahimMohtaram) May 25, 2022

A7 first the entrepreneur must know the trade ecosystem and the players, budget for paid professional advisors such as CITPs @FITTNews in the business and hire great custom brokers, freight forwarders, etc. #startupChats

— Clarecia Christe CITP ?? (@ClareciaChriste) May 25, 2022

I’d say that a good freight forwarder can make a difference. They are not all equal. #StartupChats

— Igor Chigrin (@winglobal_igor) May 25, 2022

A7 – Talented CITP certified staff! #StartupChats

— Greg Gerritsen (@greg_gerritsen) May 25, 2022

What are some strategies you can adopt to make sure your customers remain happy even if there is a delay with shipments and product delivery?

Being proactive, considering pessimistic transit times, managing expectations when signing contracts, being realistic and honoring promises, clear and fast communication and explanation, increased visibility by online tools, hard work, and honesty. #StartupChats

— Rahim Mohtaram (@RahimMohtaram) May 25, 2022

A8 Bring customers in the supply chain journey with you with tracking technology, be transparent and realistic on arrival times, provide complementary services e.g. inventory management software, future discounts, etc. #StartupChats @FITTNews

— Clarecia Christe CITP ?? (@ClareciaChriste) May 25, 2022

A8. Over-communicate, provide them expectations in advance and sometimes you have to throw in a “we’ll cover the expedited delivery cost for this one!”

— audrey ross citp|fibp (@tresAudrey) May 25, 2022

A8 – Real time tracking and tracing, and visibility of your goods in transit. Regardless of mode, air (courier or heavy freight), land or Ocean. #StartupChats

— Greg Gerritsen (@greg_gerritsen) May 25, 2022

Yep! There will be a quiz later! https://t.co/AOYkY90git#Incoterms2020 pic.twitter.com/kVfQHsjQHn

— FITT (@FITTNews) May 25, 2022

Learn more about Startup Canada’s Startup Global Portal.

Don’t forget, once you register, you can access several FITT presentations, workshops, videos, and even a discount on FITTskills training.

Achieving a professional designation requires an investment in time and effort, and before you make the commitment you’ll want to be sure of the value you receive from earning it.

The Certified International Trade Professional (CITP) designation is recognized as the stamp of excellence employers trust all over the world. The designation officially validates professional competency of international trade professionals. Currently, there are practicing CITP|FIBPs in over 40 countries and growing.

This global designation is earned by meeting a rigorous set of competency standards, based on extensive industry consultation and set by FITT—the world’s most trusted international trade training and professional certification authority.

It would be easy for FITT to list the many advantages of holding the CITP designation, but since we created it over 20 years ago, we’ve had the chance to get an abundance of feedback from the individuals holding the designation.

But what better way to communicate the benefits of the CITP designation than to share that feedback straight from the CITPs themselves?

Over the years we’ve noticed consistencies in what the designation holders say they value most in the designation, both at the time of earning it and after they’ve been able to put it into practice and reap the rewards. Here are the top seven most common benefits straight from real feedback we’ve collected.

1. Having the designation shows my work is of a higher quality

“I did a fair amount of research into what clients were looking for before starting my own company and consistently the #1 priority was reputation. It’s extremely important regardless of where you’re doing work around the world to uphold the standards upheld by the CITP designation. It shows you have the systems in place to ensure that your work is always of quality and dependable.” Paula Greene, CITP – President & CEO, BEYOND Ventures Group Business

“The CITP designation will help open new doors for me when I decide to take the next steps in my career by providing to potential employers or stakeholders that I have the knowledge and the skills to succeed in the field of international business.” Laura Pixley, CITP – Senior Trade Officer, Food and Drink, UK Department for International Trade

“The CITP designation establishes my capability on the global stage at the technical level and opens additional doors for me within international trade organizations.” James Collard, CITP – Director of Planning, Economic & Industrial Development, Citizen Potawatomi Nation

2. Having the CITP shows I represent a higher standard of ethics & professionalism

“My CITP designation will tell the world that I am qualified to advise and consult in this space, providing confidence to our clients and proving that the leadership at our firm is highly qualified.” Clark Grue, CITP – CEO, Rainmaker Global

“Congratulations to my fellow CITPs! By earning the CITP designation, you’ve signaled your dedication to delivering the very best of advice, support, and service to the businesses that compete in the remarkable arena that is global trade. You make those businesses better and that is good for us all,” Mairead Lavery, CITP – President & CEO, EDC.

3. The CITP designation connects me to an elite network of global trade professionals

“Earning the CITP felt like an important milestone opening the door to take part in connecting with like-minded counterparts, who just like me are deeply passionate in international trade, developing and sharing the best approaches and practices of our profession.” Gaukhar Kydrykhanova, CITP – Trade Commissioner, Embassy of Canada in Kazakhstan.

“I am sincerely excited about connecting with fellow professionals in Toronto who are similarly passionate enough to invest in themselves by pursuing this designation.” Abedin Kader, CITP – Business Development & Project Coordinator, Canadian German Chamber of Industry and Commerce Inc.

“I am very excited and humbled to be associated with such an elite designation and the enormous opportunity it presents for networking and working with top-notch industry players, and for career advancement.” Obed Boateng, CITP – Branch Manager at TD.
 

Want to learn more about the Certified International Trade Professional (CITP®|FIBP®) designation? See why it’s the world’s most recognized designation for competency and credibility in global business.

4. It endows me with a sense of pride to have earned the CITP designation

“It’s a great honour to be included among this growing, yet still exclusive community of dedicated and highly trained professionals, including the 40 CITPS within EDC and counting.” – Mairead Lavery, President & CEO, EDC

“I feel thrilled and proud of this achievement. It is the perfect match for my profile. The CITP will help me better guide our clients, and it will open doors for more trade opportunities.” Houssam Hoteit, CITP – Senior Trade Finance Specialist

“I am very honoured at having received the approval to join this great community of international trade professionals. I think this designation will open new opportunities to engage with colleagues in the international trade field.” Juan Navarro, CITP – Director and Principal Researcher, CMX Partnerships

5. The CITP is a valuable career asset for employers worldwide

“I chose the  CITP designation to consolidate my skills sets in international business and to be an asset to companies that may want to expand into developing markets, especially in Africa.” Emmanuel Asafo Adjei, CITP –  Owner of E.A.T. Tigernuts Co.

“This designation adds credibility to my career and distinguishes me from my colleagues at work. My employers have more confidence in my abilities and to assign me with several challenging and interesting projects in the days ahead.” Pavan Kulkarni, CITP – Manager Supply Chain and Operations  

6. It shows my potential clients, colleagues and peers that I have credibility in the global trade environment

“I selected the Certified International Trade Professional designation, simply because I believe it is the best option available. The CITP is the world’s most credible and recognized designation in international trade, and it helps me to add value in my services to my customers. I am thrilled to be a CITP, because, after 15 years of hard work, my expertise is now validated by the most credible international trade entity in the world.” Rahim Mohtaram, CITP – Supply Chain Management Program Coordinator, triOS College

“I feel the CITP adds to my professional credibility. Interactions with Canadian clients are mostly online, and I feel the CITP is a brand that is recognized by clients for excellence in professional skills and the ability to understand their business requirements. It highlights my capability to provide high-quality service.” Subha Sundarajan, CITP – Trade Commissioner at Global Affairs Canada

7. The designation proves to potential clients and employers my commitment to trade as a career

“As I continue to build my international consulting business, the CITP designation will reinforce to my customers my education, skillset and experience, and give them more confidence that I am someone who has what it takes to help them expand globally.” Ben Chutta, CITP –  International Business Consultant

“Earning the CITP®|FIBP® designation demonstrates a commitment to international trade and grants me a high level of credibility within the field. I look forward to playing a more active role with FITT here in the United States and being a resource for those in or looking to enter the field of international trade.” Simon Slyper, CITP|FIBP – National Import Specialist Associate, Office of Trade at U.S. Customs and Border Protection

“I felt proud to earn this designation. For me, having this designation was further proof that I am on the right path in my career development, and my commitment to global trade will only continue to grow.” Samuel Boateng, CITP – Trade Commissioner, Global Affairs Canada

National Volunteer Week (NVW) April 24-30, 2022 celebrates the contributions of millions of volunteers across Canada and the world who devote their time to others.  

To acknowledge this NVW, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a statement asserting, 

“Volunteers are the lifeblood of communities and organizations across the country. Every year, approximately 24 million Canadians volunteer their time, energy, and experiences to improve the lives of others from coast to coast to coast.” 

For organizations like FITT, who rely on subject matter experts and committees to contribute to our programs and initiatives, we quite agree. And it is only right that we take the time to celebrate the individuals who so generously give their time. 

From governance, to helping us develop our educational content, offering skilled and objective assessment in certification and accreditation, and providing mentorship and guidance, FITT engaged more than 200 individuals in volunteer roles over the past year. 

The Prime Minister invited all Canadians to “join me in thanking our volunteers whose service and selflessness play a key role in building a better future for everyone.” 

At FITT we have a lot of people to thank. 

The team that keeps FITT going in the right direction

The FITT Board of Directors includes 17 individuals who offer continual support, feedback and leadership in many forms. Within the BoD is the Audit Committee – monitoring and ensuring our organization’s sound financial operation, the Executive Committee – supporting the board and executive decision-making, the Governance Committee – providing regular oversight of FITT’s governance and processes, and the Nominating Committee – reviewing and confirming that FITT’s Board remains representative of all stakeholders and possesses the competencies necessary for effective performance.  

All of the above requires a significant and regular commitment of time and effort, and we are incredibly grateful for the dedication of this skilled and diverse group of leaders. 

Providing knowledge and real-world experience to help us develop the highest quality training and certification

Another absolutely essential group of volunteers we need to celebrate are those who have participated in committees, review sessions, surveys and more to assist with the development and updates of FITT’s educational material.  

A huge thank you goes out to the Content Advisory Panel (CAP), made up of CITPs who are all subject matter experts and exemplary international trade professionals. The individuals in the CAP all bring a minimum of ten years of practical experience and formal education in their field of practice. They are a purposely diverse group including individuals from small and large international businesses, in both the public and private sectors, as well as specialists in import and export commodities, and government trade advisors.

This incredibly knowledgeable and experienced panel represents regions across Canada and different areas of expertise, all to ensure that the content they work to develop is representative of all areas of international trade.

We are currently updating the FITT International Trade Competency Framework, CITP Competency Profile and CITP Professional Examination. To do that, we are working with three groups of CITPs, and we can’t thank these members enough for their ongoing valuable time and effort. 

The CITP Exam Committee provides final validation of the FITT International Trade Competency Framework (ITCF) and CITP Competency Profile (Profile). The ITCF is a comprehensive definition outlining the entire depth and breadth of the skills and knowledge required of international trade practitioners, and the Profile – derived from the ITCF – highlights the specific competencies required by Certified International Trade Professionals.

They provide recommendation on the CITP Professional Exam parameters, review and validate exam content and complete periodic reviews of exam items and performance. In other words, they provide crucial services to ensure the quality and standards of FITT’s certification program.  

The CITP Exam Item Writers work to specifically develop and/or review new exam questions for the CITP Professional Exam, ensuring sufficient questions for each competency category being assessed.  

The International Trade Competency Framework Focus Groups were comprised of CITPs who participated in multiple sessions to provide input into the development and update of competencies required by international trade professionals. These focus groups consisted of subject matter experts of practicing international trade professionals to ensure the resulting products are reflective of current practices and performance expectations. 

Want to learn more about the Certified International Trade Professional (CITP®|FIBP®) designation? See why it’s the world’s most recognized designation for competency and credibility in global business.

A staggering 130 volunteers assisted with the above initiatives.

An important initiative, separate to the three groups above, collected feedback and input from CITPs regarding which competencies should appear on the updated CITP Competency Profile. An amazing and essential 150 CITPs contributed to this process.   

Thank you to the Certification and Accreditation Committee (CAC), a group of CITPs whose purpose/mandate is to review and confirm applications and activities that lead to the awarding and maintenance of the professional designation!

This committee has been crucial to our certification processes and we cannot thank the long-standing committee members enough for their dedication to FITT!

CAC responsibilities will be transferred this fall to the Content Advisory Panel and/or the Certification Council.

Contributing to the success of the global trade community

The Global Mentorship Program Committee worked hard last year to establish and facilitate the FITT Global Mentorship Program which ran last April – October. This program brought together 12 mentors and 12 mentees to create a “launchpad for CITP success”, facilitating valuable connections within the international trade community, and creating valuable professional development opportunities.

The committee worked tirelessly to establish program eligibility guidelines, review all applications, and select the 24 total participants. Thank you all for making this pilot program such an unmitigated success! 

On top of all of the committees and initiatives already mentioned we would be remiss if we did not applaud and celebrate the many subject matter experts and CITPs who have volunteered their time for: 

• Mentorship initiatives, including the FITT Global Mentorship Pilot Program and EDC x SheEO Global Activator Cohort 
• Multiple FITT events and speaking engagements  
• TradeReady.ca contributors and; 
• #TradeElite Twitter chat participants

Thank you to all of you who help us do what we do to support individuals and businesses in their success in global markets! 

We all know that undergoing professional development to gain new skills is something we should all be doing on a regular basis. According to HR Magazine and the Huffington post – companies that invest $1,500 or more per employee per year on training average 24 % higher profit margins than companies with lower yearly training investments. That’s huge!

When it comes to professional certification, a recent survey of 400,000 people across the globe found that 76% of people reported a salary increase or promotion after completing a professional certification. According to FITT’s own recent CITP salary survey, the median salary of CITP®|FIBP®s in Canada is CAD $52,000 more than the average median salary in the country.

Those are the statistics, but we wanted to talk to real business owners to find out how the FITTskills courses and earning the Certified International Trade Professional (CITP) designation impacted their ventures and their personal careers. Here’s what 6 of them had to say.

Emmanuel Asafo Adjei, CITP – Owner of E.A.T. Tigernuts Co.

FITTskills coursework helped this business owner see opportunities to expand into new markets, and the know-how to succeed.

His CITP designation added the credibility he needs to attract clients all over the world.

In his work in international trade, Emmanuel has seen many successes. They include managing more than $100 million in inventory assets in one of southwestern Ontario’s largest warehouse facilities, facilitating and auditing shipping documents while ensuring that shipments met international standards, and building quality control and international trade databases that reduced audit time and paperwork by more than 80%.

In his latest venture, Emmanuel is working on farming the superfood tiger nuts in Africa for import into Canada. He’s packaging and distributing the superfood into niche food stores in Canada and the United States. Through his career and FITT studies, Emmanuel has also learned the importance of perseverance:

“Never give up on any goal you set for yourself. There may be challenges, but they all pass away and give way to your success eventually. One of my proudest moments was getting my FITT diploma.”

With his FITT coursework, Emmanuel earned a deeper understanding of the nuances of food imports, packaging, and distribution in Canada and the United States—knowledge that has proved extremely valuable as the owner of a food import business. FITTskills have helped him better understand importing goods, working with Canadian customs, the Canada Food Inspection Agency, Canada Revenue Authority, Port Authority, and import brokers.

Broadening perspectives on new markets Emmanuel’s FITTskills courses—such as the International Trade Finance course—gave him insight into working with global clients, suppliers, and customers, along with expanding his global literacy and inter-cultural awareness. They’ve also helped him see future opportunities in trade.

I chose the  CITP designation to consolidate my skills sets in international business and to be an asset to companies that may want to expand into developing markets, especially in Africa.

“My motivation has broadened to include the many growth opportunities with Africa’s 1.3 billion-person market, now one of the largest free-trade areas in the world. With the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement signed by its 55 countries—and the projected $2.2 trillion GDP—Canada cannot ignore this huge market.”

Quentin Randall, CITP – Owner, Randall Strategy

FITTskills International Trade Finance course equipped this business owner help his clients access capital and reach new markets by giving him a full understanding of international transactions, from risks to closing payments.

His CITP designation gives him automatic credibility and recognition with his overseas clients – helping him to secure new projects.

Randall Strategy is led by certified financial and trade professionals. The organization aims to de-risk business ventures so SMEs can raise capital and enter new markets. They help these companies get the capital and contracts they need so they can focus on running their business.

“Every time I get to meet and work with a new small business client, I learn about their operations and help them grow; it is a very rewarding experience. Most of these companies are family-owned and operated, and helping them understand that they too can compete globally is very rewarding.

My favourite FITTskills course was International Trade Finance because it helped me better understand how to mitigate currency risk, make payments and ultimately complete a transaction. In my mind, a mutually beneficial transaction is the core of trade and this course really brought home how to do that.

My business helps small businesses access capital and reach new markets. The CITP is a well-regarded international designation and CITPs are held to a standard of professionalism that I wanted applied to my practice. It helps secure my company’s reputation of professionalism.

We are also seeking to grow by importing products into Canada, and CITP designation is immediately recognizable overseas, providing a certain level of trust and professionalism.

I am proud to have my CITP designation. It validates my experience and signals to clients that I will represent their best interest. It also enhances my ability to participate in the global trade market, which is very exciting.”

Want to learn more about the Certified International Trade Professional (CITP®|FIBP®) designation? See why it’s the world’s most recognized designation for competency and credibility in global business.

Carolina Vasquez, CITP – Founder, The Pacific Trade Show

FITTskills training gave Carolina the birds eye view of international trade as a whole, as well as the inner workings of trade transactions she needed to effectively guide her SME clients through doing business in global markets.

The CITP designation validated the high level of international business knowledge and experience Carolina embodies at home and abroad.

After several years of working on events in Toronto, promoting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from the Pacific Region, Carolina decided to create a new platform and an international program to connect Canadian companies, organizations and SMEs looking for international business opportunities.

The Pacific Trade Show brings together a new platform for participants to connect through experience sharing and networking, learn from a wide range of speakers, and discover new market trends in products and/or services.

In 2011, Carolina attained her Certified International Trade Professional designation, the CITP|FIBP, a strategic move that would serve her in many ways in her career.

Carolina adds that,

“The program is so comprehensive, and courses like Feasibility of International Trade and Global Value Chain have been key tools in my career for a better understanding in all aspects of international trade. What I have learned has also been a decisive factor for effectively managing cultural differences and language barriers… it has been a complimentary tool to continue my professional development.

FITTskills training gave me the know-how to understand and put in practice many aspects of global trade and successfully guide SMEs businesses through their international business experience in Canada.

I have been involved in international trade for over 20 years, and getting the CITP designation gave me recognition of my competency, knowledge and expertise in international trade in Canada.”

Sarah Barnes-Humphrey, CITP|FIBP – CEO, Shipz Inc., Host of Let’s Talk Supply Chain podcast

For this supply chain expert and entrepreneur, the FITTskills courses gave her an understanding of what companies go through to source new materials or sell their products in new markets in order to be able to help them succeed.

Earning the CITP designation gave her credibility and validated her industry expertise to her prospective clients and her peers.

Earning the CITP designation was hugely important. It shows that I am dedicated to my field and have the knowledge to help companies be successful in global trade.

“When I am speaking at an event and I mention being a CITP or what the training FITT provides, it’s well received, and shows that I invest in the industry I speak in and gives me credibility.”

Throughout her 20 year tenure in supply chain, Sarah has gained a reputation for her passion for the industry. Her efforts range from helping to build cost-effective supply chains to hosting one of the top podcasts in the industry, including her popular Women in Supply Chain series highlighting powerhouse women doing amazing things in the industry.

As the host of the popular  “Let’s Talk Supply Chain” podcast, Sarah interviews top supply chain professionals so everyone can learn more about this interesting industry. You can check out Lets Talk episodes anywhere you listen to podcasts, including iTunes, Spotify, google play and Stitcher.

​Sarah’s dedication to excellence in the field has resulted from a combination of hands-on experience and obtaining her CITP designation, FIATA Diploma and CIFFA certifications. Sarah continues this dedication as a Board Member and Certification and Accreditation Committee (CAC) member for FITT. In addition to her podcast, Sarah is a serial entrepreneur and is changing the industry through the online platform she and her team are working on, Shipz Inc.

Shipz gives shippers direct and easy access to supply chain services to keep their business competitive. They help importers and exporters move their raw materials or finished products globally.

Daniel Lewis, CITP – Founder, Daniel’s Chai Bar (Formerly T By Daniel)

Earning the CITP designation allowed this influential entrepreneur to gain credibility with suppliers, stakeholders and peers along all points of his global value chain, and has helped him position himself as a trade expert when pursuing leadership opportunities.

After 10 years of experience selling products and services internationally Daniel applied for his CITP designation via the executive path. This unique pathway to the designation for those with a decade of executive-level experience in international trade is ideal for those who want to validate their experience and knowledge with a globally-recognized credential.

After telling his inspirational story on national television, Daniel’s first tea shop opened to a packed house.

As word spread about Daniel’s story about overcoming adversity and channeling his passion into a successful business, he started to get invitations to speak to youth audiences and share his entrepreneurial journey. His story was getting the attention of some very well-heeled individuals indeed.

“The biggest milestone in my career thus far dates back to 2017, when we were invited to serve our tea to HRH – Prince Charles | The Prince Of Wales during his Royal Tour to Canada to celebrating our country’s 150th anniversary.” HRH put in a repeat order only a few months later.

A true entrepreneur, he hustles daily to ensure his business’ success, with a hands-on role in sales generation, increasing profitability, marketing and brand positioning, strategic corporate partnerships, managing profit and loss, recruiting and training, web development, communications, daily operations, inventory, customer service and customer experience, international sales and more tasks than you can count.

I plan on being very active with my designation and putting it to work, rather than simply polishing my LinkedIn name. I think there are so many opportunities and networks that I can tap into because of this designation.

Daniel is an active motivational speaker, blogger, podcaster and continues to spread his positive energy throughout his endeavours.

Ken MacDonald, CITP – President & CEO, CLARITY Sales Enablement

Earning his CITP designation allowed this global business leader to quickly and effectively communicate with his clients, prospective clients, and international colleagues how knowledgeable he is when it comes to the strategic and practical aspects of cross-border business.

After over two decades of executive-level experience in international sales and marketing roles Ken earned his CITP designation via the executive path.

As President and CEO at Clarity Sales Enablement, Ken partners with businesses to help them scale-up and enter new markets, guiding them through complex problems in competitive environments and maximizing opportunities while mitigating risk.

“Our clients are focused on global markets, and while not restricted by geography, there are complex challenges in entering these competitive environments successfully. Experience and awareness are key.”

The CITP designation is widely recognized and lends significant credibility to my dialogue as it relates to international business development.

Ken is so convinced of the value of the designation that he encourages and helps the young entrepreneurs he mentors to earn their CITP designation in order to provide them with a competitive advantage.

Roberto Tiradentes de Lima was born in Brazil, and by the time he was a teenager, had begun learning English and Spanish in addition to his Portuguese native tongue. It was this experience with multiple languages that first sparked his interest in international cultures, communication, economies, and how they all intersect on the world stage. Roberto decided to parlay these interests as well as his trilingual abilities into a career and went on to study international business in post-secondary school.

Helping to facilitate trade from companies to countries

Roberto has since embarked on an impactful international career, taking him to many countries including the USA, England, Ireland, Spain, Italy and now Canada for his work. He has worked with an impressive array of global organizations on projects and policy affecting nations worldwide, including the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Brazilian Ministry of Agrarian Development (MDA), Department of International Negotiations for the Trade Promotion International Advisory (Brazil), the World Trade Organization, and now Global Affairs Canada.

Roberto’s favorite career highlights all relate to assisting companies expanding internationally, working with governments to create beneficial international policies, and the personal growth that comes as a result of travelling internationally and living abroad.

“There is nothing compared to seeing a company’s growth in international market share as a result of our assistance, or participating in government high level group work to discuss commercial defence measures (including players like Canadian Bombardier and Brazilian Embraer),” says Roberto.

Developing agri-trade policies to improve food security in developing countries

One career highlight Roberto is particularly proud of is his work for the Brazilian government.

“I was hired as an international business consultant by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), to work in the Brazilian Ministry of Agrarian Development (MDA).

I was a member of the Department of International Negotiations for the Trade Promotion International Advisory (AIPC) in the Minister’s Office where I provided consultancy in foreign trade and assisted Brazil in reviewing policies related to food security and anti-dumping measures in reference to commercial defense.

In addition to that, I was involved with Doha development round for agriculture, for the World Trade Organization. During this time, I participated in weekly meetings with diplomats in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, briefed and debriefed the senior management team and participated in high level, confidential work with multiple internal and external stakeholders.”

One of my proudest professional accomplishments during this work was when I coordinated, in Spanish, the Brazilian delegation on ‘commerce facilitation negotiations’ in Uruguay for a Mercosur meeting.

I also drafted briefing notes and elaborated five technical documents on General System of Trade Preferences Among Developing Countries (food security), Commercial Defense Measures (anti-dumping measures) and on the Brazilian Foreign Trade Chamber. I think all of this has prepared me well for my career at GAC, which I’m really excited about.”

Career success comes down to continuous relationship building and professional development

Roberto took the FITTskills courses as a way of reviewing and updating his professional knowledge, with the ultimate goal of earning his CITP designation.

“Taking FITTskills courses was part of a great review process and learning through a lot of reading, videos and gleaning the lessons from many different case studies. This learning process helped me have a broader view of the international business environment.

My favourite FITTskills course was Global Value Chain. I have accumulated a lot of solid experience in imports and exports as a result of working for freight forwarding and trading companies, and I love this type of work.

During my work experience I have developed logistics plans, coordinated with brokers, cargo agents, and international insurance, and developed shipping plans to minimize freight spending and to optimize time. Even with all of that experience, the course on Global Value Chain covers all of the important aspects of this fascinating “universe,” which is always evolving. So, we’re always learning new things.”

Want to learn more about the Certified International Trade Professional (CITP®|FIBP®) designation? See why it’s the world’s most recognized designation for competency and credibility in global business.

Adding credibility to experience and expertise with the CITP designation

Joining the CITP|FIBP community was also a way of proving his credibility, improving his career prospects, and growing his network of established trade professionals.

“One thing I’ve learned during my career that I wish I had known when I started working in international business is to never underestimate the power of networking. I chose to apply for the CITP designation because it has a great reputation and is widely recognized. In addition to that, the Trade Commissioners at GAC are encouraged to earn their CITP designation in recognition of the international trade competencies it validates, and those who have it may increase their chances of internal promotions.”

“I felt rewarded when I got the email informing me that my application for the elite CITP-FIBP designation has been approved. The process of earning the CITP designation demand many hours of dedication and discipline, so I felt that a plan had been put in action and the result was obtained. I’m happy to part of this elite professional community.”

We’re looking forward to following Roberto’s already impressive career with Global Affairs Canada and beyond.