Real-time visibility into your global suppliers is no longer a pipe dream. Market leaders in every industry segment have visibility not just into their important tier 1 suppliers, but also a limited cross-section of their tier 2 and tier 3 suppliers as well. Enterprise-class technology solutions that offer flexibility and visibility at every step are a required part of every agile company’s playbook to stay ahead of the game in 2017 and beyond.

Global trade compliance risks are not always easy to identify and don't manifest in only one area of the supply chain. Also, if you are not preparing your organization to address them, you can expose your company to irreparable damage. 

As an exporter, being aware of those risks is the first step in learning how to manage them.

In the face of a disruptive world, companies are ever-more empowered to transform their global supply chains. In the multi-faceted climate of global trade, organizational survival relies on the ability to effectively anticipate, adjust, and alter supply chains to maintain a reputation of reliability and high performance. This expectation makes flexibility, agility, coordination, and speed vital components to the life blood of any global organization.

Most of us are familiar with the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) and the work they do to protect consumers. Recently we’ve heard a great deal about safety recalls for air bags, mobile phones and hover boards – all of these with life-threatening concerns for consumers.  As manufacturers and importers, it is your responsibility to ensure every product meets the most current standards for product testing; an often difficult task given the mounting additions to the current federal and state regulations.

In today's complex and dynamic regulatory environment, retailers must leverage technology and best practices to address costly product safety and compliance risks. Real time visibility and reporting are essential components in preventing disruptions throughout the entire product development lifecycle. However, what happens if your data becomes scattered and is not integrated into a primary supply chain management solution?

Uncertainty is perhaps the greatest industry trend of 2017. Rooted in the changes to our political climate, inevitable supply chain risks, and drastic shifts in customs and trade patterns, global transactions are riddled with challenges. As a trade compliance professional, you know that operating in a volatile environment requires overcoming the uncertainty that complicates even the most mundane of tasks.

Supply chain risk comes in various forms - geopolitical, cyber security, and natural disasters (just to name a few). So, how can you prevent these risks from becoming major supply chain disruptions?

Risk in the supply chain comes in a variety of forms, including inadequate or poor product quality testing and supplier management programs. Additionally, enhanced government regulatory requirements have created an environment where strong risk mitigation practices are an imperative for avoiding lost sales and negative publicity.

Next month, Jenny Roman, Solutions Manager, Amber Road, will speak at the USFIA Fashion Forward Seminar on April 5th in Columbus, Ohio. This seminar will address the  future of trade policy, compliance, and supply chain management for the fashion industry.

A few weeks ago, we held a lively webinar with Megan Coale from Vera Bradley and Cheryl Layne from our customer success team.  We talked about the implementation of Amber Road’s solutions used by the teams at Vera Bradley to produce their iconic products.  Vera Bradley is a manufacturer of stylish quilted cotton luggage, handbags and accessories. With small-town roots in Indiana, the brand has grown to $500 million in annual sales, serving customers all around the globe.  Known for its distinctive and colorful fabrics and trims, some of the core company values that originated at Vera Bradley’s birth 20 years ago still exist – high quality products, produced by suppliers in a timely fashion, and of course, those recognizable, trend-setting fabrics.  These are the expectations of customers today, and Vera Bradley has it in the bag.

Global supply chains have been pulled tight, contracted, and at times broken during 2016. As we move into 2017, global trade management executives need to brace against disrupters that have the potential to send your supply chain into a tailspin: What will US trade policy look like? How can my supply chain handle new security risks? What, if anything, will happen to the TPP?

Join Amber Road's Global Trade Academy for our webinar, 2017: Bracing for Instability in Global Trade, on Wednesday, December 7, at 2PM EST to hear thought leaders answer a few of these questions.