Outside The Box Consulting

02/07/2024

Very proud to be part of the Institute of export and to have received this yesterday.

Outside the Box taking your business Over the Border.

An Associate Member is a professional in international business or in overseas related trade with three or more years' experience in International Trade and/or has completed a Level 4 professional qualification with the Institute.

18/06/2024

An organisation I work with are looking for an administrator to join the exams team. If you are interested, please let me know and I will make a personal introduction.

Job Title: Administrator
Location: Aspire House, Eastleigh
Working Pattern: 37 hours per week, flexible working available. 1 Year Maternity Cover
Salary: £26,213 per annum
Requirements: 2 year’s administration experience in a busy and complex environment.
Closing date: 4th July

If you are passionate about education and want to work in a vibrant environment with people, who believe in the organisations mission to advance education for the public benefit. As a diversity sensitive employer, they are always looking out for exceptional talent to join from a wide range of backgrounds.

This Administrator position is working within an exams department as part of a six-person team. This is detailed administration role which involves working with a range of internal and external stakeholders. Attention to detail, the ability to prioritise tasks, and managing your own time are essential skills for this role. This is a great opportunity for anyone who enjoys a detailed oriented approach to their work and has experience within fast-paced administrative environments.

08/03/2024

Today, March 8, 2024, is International Women’s Day, spearheaded by the United Nations the theme is 'Invest in women: Accelerate progress”.

Women have triumphed in the fight for the right to vote, have equal access to education, and hold positions of leadership in politics, representing strength and power. Beside these advancements, women continue to confront significant barriers and this year's theme is addressing a key challenge: the alarming $360 billion annual deficit in gender-equality measures by 2030.

The Official UN International Women’s Day commemoration will be held in the ECOSOC Chamber and live streamed from 10:00 am to 11:30 am EST.

Interesting fact, in 1984, Australia introduced the world’s first Women’s Budget Statement, which paved the way for many others to follow suit.

Let's unite for women all around the world .

23/02/2024

As my time concludes with AnTech, that has been home for 10 months, it has been so lovely to work in an organisation where the people of the business really matter. AnTech is such a wonderful story of a small business doing massive things, where the purpose is clear and the mission is mighty.

It has been a pleasure working to establish a professionalised international trade desk. I hope those foundations support AnTech's continuing growth across overseas territories.

If you are a business that undertakes activity across international jurisdictions and want support with professionalising the international trade desk, I can drop in on a contract basis as your compliance and shipping Queen, to bring structure and compliance to strengthen your business' overseas operations. Hopefully some of these messages will give the confidence that I can deliver measurable outcomes that support the team and business outputs......

Thank you AnTech for being such a wonderfully welcoming and supportive company, the gifts and messages have been truly heartwarming (and appreciated by my whole family!).

14/02/2024

Oh my. I'm very humbled. I have been nominated by mentees and out of 250 nominees I have been selected as a finalist for two out of eight categories; 'Excellence in Mentoring Award' and the 'Biggest Impact Award', at the UK's National Mentoring Award 2024.

I am SO excited. Of course I would love to win but it gives me the greatest sense of reward just to be recognised amongst so many amazing business mentors across the UK.

I mentor on behalf of the government and specialise in developing leaders across the UK. I am super proud of the work I do and have dedicated much of my working life to empowering both individuals and teams to reach their potential. It genuinely gives me the greatest satisfaction to see personal and professional growth where achieving the unimaginable really does happen.

I do this by providing tools to develop the leadership mindset, and share insight driven strategies that optimise the business capability, re-engaging despondent team members, and reframing the challenge to achieve measurable outcomes. I help create unique blueprints that can be replicated as the business grows or diversifies, and I lower barriers when reaching into international markets.

Thank you to those who choose to work with me, it is both an honour and a privilege 🙏

08/02/2024

Good morning 😊 I am looking for one person who has experience in international trade or freight forwarding to work beside me as an assessor for international freight apprentices joining the industry.

It's a rewarding position in that you come in at the end of the apprentices journey where they showcase all they have learned before they set sail on their wider career.

It's flexible, you can work from anywhere, a Microsoft surface will be provided and full training given so no previous assessing experience is required. You can set the pace and remain in control of your diary around other commitments.

All I need is industry experience and a DBS will be undertaken.

If you think this sounds interesting, please do flick me a message or call on 07581187705. Come and join the team in a fabulous company where exceeding the norm happens every day 😊

29/01/2024

Hello, I thought I would pop a little message in here today to say if you are involved with transacting across borders, I can help ensure your business is operating compliantly and cost effectively.

As a customs compliance officer, I can also ensure your business will stand up to the rigour of a HMRC inspection.

Equally, if you are looking to expand internationally and need help to access new markets, leveraging my global partnerships, together we can break down the barriers and provide a clear roadmap into new territories.

I can be contacted on 0758 1187705🌏

02/09/2023

I am very proud to have received this email - it proves what we are all capable of when we connect through our hearts ambition, doing the thing we love and are called to do.

I quite literally love serving businesses who trade across borders, helping them to grow their business in international territories, and access markets that enable the business to scale.

I can support myriad disciplines, whether seeking compliance to cross border operations, accessing new markets, understanding contractual obligations, international payment terms, dual use licencing, mitigation and corrective actions when something goes wrong, ATA carnet generation, incoterm training, support through HMRC investigation, auditing, supply chain due diligence and denied party screening - to name just a few.

But for now, I'm going frock shopping for this illustrious event at Mansion house, the residence and office of the Lord Mayor. I might be a little excited 😊

11/05/2023

I am now a qualified End-Point Assessor, with a spotlight focus on International Freight apprentices, supporting the industry I love so much to grow with fresh and energetic new talent 🥰

26/04/2023

I love getting myself stuck into a project that brings security to international trade transactions for those I work with.

Currently focussing on Dual-use goods which are items that can be used both for civilian and military applications.

Determining whether items fall under Dual-use can prove challenging though an audit will not only consider the technical definitions and specifications, but also the intended use.

Did you know thatDual-use controls can apply to the most unlikely goods asit may be down to the material it is made of (rubber o-rings), or the technical capacities of the goods (certain
valves), as well as what it might do (fertilizers = explosive). Furthermore, there are certain materials with properties, or components, that can be stripped out and used for other purposes as demonstrated in the tennis racket image.

Getting it wrong can be scary as breaching dual-use export controls is a criminal offence. Penalties can vary depending on the nature of the offence and include:

🛑 revocation of licences
🛑 seizure of items
🛑 issuing of a compound penalty fine
🛑 imprisonment for up to 10 years

So today has been great to work beside an esteemed colleague as together we commenced such an audit, to bring compliance and implement appropriate measures, ensuring the business under review is safeguarded and thus remove the risk of penalties.

If you might have any questions about your commodities, please just pick up the phone, for impartial and discreet advice.

13/04/2023

Having attended a webinar yesterday hosted by the The Institute of Export & International Trade and Deputy Director of the Cabinet Office, Alexander Walford, I have tried to encapsulate some pertinent points following the release of the Border Target Operating Model (TOM), which lays out a new regime to realise the ambition of the 2025 Border Strategy: to create a seamless, and one of the most effective, digital borders in the world.

This new model will harness new technologies, make best use of real-time data and better target risk to reduce friction and costs for businesses and consumers and create a radically simpler yet secure experience for traders moving goods.

TOM is anticipated to be implemented in three stages between October 2023 and October 2024, and will see the implementation of new security and biosecurity controls on imports from the EU, similar to those the EU introduced in 2021.

These controls will ensure our environment is protected, deliver food that is safe to eat whilst maintaining security of supply for consumers, and disrupt criminal activity.

This will safeguard our biosecurity, maintain food safety standards, and ensure traceability provenance, including plants and plant products, across the UK border.

DEFRA will be running a series of workshops and sector specific sessions to give guidance which will include more information on risk-based controls, groupage models and trusted trader schemes.

These will help traders understand what the TOM will mean for their business, and give further opportunity to provide feedback on the proposals before they are finalised.

The key dates to remember are

- October 2023 - requirement for export health certificates for food
- January 2024 - physical checks on imports begin at UK ports. High-risk plants and plant products must come through a Border Control Post (BCP)or Control Point (CP) where identity and physical checks will be carried out
- October 2024 - requirement for safety and security documentation begins for almost all imports.

For any further queries or questions you have about the draft TOM, please contact [email protected].

Otherwise, if you need any guidance, I'm here to simplify the complex!