Sophie Photo

The Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade’s head of membership, Sophie Tothill, previews the week ahead for members, including events, webinars, recent news affecting traders and the exclusive resources the Chartered Institute can offer to help.

Mentoring matters

To celebrate National Mentoring Day on Thursday 14 November, we’ll be holding a special session to highlight the benefits of both mentoring and being mentored.

I’ll be joined by our head of academic services Mikaela Morgans and PLD Mentoring’s Chris Murray, who will explain how members can maximise the benefits of this platform. There’ll be an explanation of the five key career stages, along with some myth-busting on when is best in your career to mentor or receive mentoring – with opportunities to learn throughout.

Sharing your expertise and learning from the experience of others are fantastic ways to expand your professional network and make meaningful connections to enrich your trade career. We hope lots of you will join us on Thursday at 12.30pm to learn more. You can sign up here.

Learning opportunities

Next week we’ll be hosting a Lunchtime Learning session on cybersecurity, which you can sign up for here.

Featuring our academic board chair Professor Sangeeta Khorana and other policy experts, there’ll be presentations on how small businesses in particular can ensure they’re protected from cybersecurity threats, with insights on best practice.

You’ll receive insight on “hacking, malware and phishing”, and there’ll be a Q&A session with the opportunity to pose questions to the panel.

Connect online

The next session of Connect & Grow is set for Monday 2 December. Members will be able to hear from our director general Marco Forgione, along with other senior members of the Chartered Institute.

As the year comes to a close, you’ll receive an update on our work, as well as a look-ahead to next year. As ever, there’ll be opportunities for members to network and discuss trade challenges and opportunities with one another.

From the headlines

Our latest edition of Customs Corner highlighted the new guidance provided by HMRC on the completion of Safety and Security (S&S) declarations, which will be required for EU imports as part of the third phase of the UK’s Border Target Operating Model (BTOM) from 31 January 2025.

Members can also access our series of compliance toolkits, which includes a checklist and glossary for S&S procedures and documentation.

This change will primarily affect traders who import goods from the EU – those who import goods from the rest of the world must already submit S&S declarations, and are unlikely to need to change their current procedures or systems.

For more information about the third phase of BTOM, you can also find our recent Lunchtime Learning instalment on the subject here.