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Hårda Brexit-klappar till Jul

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Det lider mot jul, och även om förutsättningarna för Brexit alltjämt hänger i luften så är det nog bäst att planera för hårda Brexit-klappar. Alla företag som handlar med Storbritannien kommer oavsett hård eller mjuk Brexit att behöva hantera ny logistik kring tullhantering, leveransvillkor, tillståndsgivning efter årsskiftet.

Företag som redan idag bedriver handel med länder utanför EU, har med största sannolikhet redan en infrastruktur på plats internt för att hantera tullhanteringen.  Har ditt företag däremot aldrig gjort affärer med länder utanför EU finns all anledning att offra en del av julledigheten på tulldeklarering, tulltaxor och leveransvillkor. Det finns bra on-line information därute hos Tullverket, Kommerskollegium och fackmyndigheter som ger vägledning.  Innan julledigheten är dock kanske det viktigaste att man kontaktar sina kunder och leverantörer i Storbritannien, för att prata igenom Brexitlogistiken och affärspåverkan.

Om du importerar är det värt att räkna på de enskilda affärer du har med brittiska leverantörer, menar Ross Hopwood som är en av Brexitexperterna på den internationella konsultplattform som Make Trade driver, Sweden on the Go.  Trots nya hårda Brexit-tullpåslag kan brittiska produkter i slutändan ändå visa sig vara konkurrenskraftiga i förhållande till EU-leverantörer på grund av lägre transportkostnader och en mer effektiv och storskalig produktion. Var transparent med dina kunder och leverantörer och se till att ha en open book policy och dela på kostnadsbördan för Brexit, säger Ross.

Storbritannien är världens femte största ekonomi och kommer även framgent att spela en viktig roll för svenska förtag och EU:s handel.

Här är en checklista med Brexitlogistik som företagen behöver hantera innan 1 januari 2021.

  • Kontakta din leverantör/kund i Storbritannien för att gå igenom Brexitlogistiken och affärspåverkan så att båda kan planera i förväg – tillkommande kostnader för tull, tillstånd och andra krav som behöver redovisas vid gränspassage, förändringar av leveransvillkor med mera.
  • Registrera företaget hos Tullverket genom att ansöka om Eori-nummer, om du inte redan har ett sådant. Tullverket uppmanar företag att vara ute i god tid och ansöka innan 28/12. Det är kostnadsfritt och innebär att företaget får ett registreringsnummer för att kunna handla med länder utanför EU. Du får också tillgång till Tullverkets e-tjänster. Läs mer på Tullverkets hemsida om Brexit – för företag som inte tidigare handlat med länder utanför EU .
  • Lär dig tulldeklarera eller anlita ett ombud. För att kunna tulldeklarera behöver du bland annat ta reda på varukoden för din produkt (HS-nummer) och vilken tull som gäller, vid till exempel export till Storbritannien. Du kan också anlita ett av Tullverket godkänt Tullombud som hanterar tulldeklareringen. Du måste dock ändå ta fram de uppgifter som behövs och ansvara för att de är korrekta.
    Följande webbplatser hjälper dig vidare.
    Tulltaxan på Tullverkets webbplats
    Finding commodity codes for imports into or exports out of the UK or EU på brittiska regeringens webbplats 
    The UK Global Tariff på brittiska regeringens webbplats
    Tullombud, processen och uppgiftskraven.
  • Tullar på export och import – Räkna med att du måste betala tull vid en hård Brexit. Vid ett handelsavtal mellan EU och Storbritannien blir det tullättnader/tullfrihet men du behöver tulldeklarera och skaffa ursprungsintyg för att dra nytta av dessa tullförmåner. Ta reda på och planera för vilka nya tullar som kommer att införas för dina produkter vid en hård Brexit.
  • Se över dina leveransvillkor – Incoterms – Se över leveransvillkoren med din kund / leverantör. Olika villkor i Incoterms får direkt påverkan på vem som tar ansvar för tulldeklarering och riskexponering. Mot bakgrund av de förseningar av leveranser som kan komma att uppstå p.g.a. Brexit, bör det framgå vem som bär ansvaret för om en vara inte levereras i tid.
  • Momshantering – En hel del förändringar sker på momsområdet som berör både varor och tjänster. En förändring vid export är att man inte behöver lägga på moms och rapportera in periodisk sammanställning – dock lämnar man fortfarande uppgifter om varuförsäljningen i momsdeklarationen. Vid import från Storbritannien, deklarerar du i regel för svensk moms på importen i din momsdeklaration. Skatteverket går igenom läget mer i detalj, inklusive vad som gäller för tjänster, Nordirland och andra undantag.
  • Särskilda krav på tillstånd och intyg för din produkt. Likartade tekniska regler kommer i princip att gälla under de närmaste åren för de produkter som redan idag omfattas av särskilda krav på tillståndsgivning, intyg och märkning, ofta kopplat till hälsa och säkerhet. Det kommer dock att krävas intyg och godkännanden vid gränspassage för handeln av dessa varor, även om Storbritannien aviserat övergångsregler under första halvåret 2021 och ett handelsavtal mellan länderna kan komma att underlätta. Om du exempelvis importerar livsmedel, jordbruksprodukter eller trävaror från Storbritannien måste du följa de regler som gäller för länder utanför EU. Mer information om detta finns hos Jordbrukverket och Livsmedelsverket.
  • Transport och logistik. Ta i god tid kontakt med de externa leverantörer som du kommer att använda för logistik och transport av dina varor – kapaciteten hos tullombud, speditörer och transportörer kommer sannolikt att vara ansträngd under nästa år. Se till att din transportör är väl förberedd och kan hantera de eventuella störningar som kan komma att uppstå.
  • Brexit påverkar inte bara handeln med varor utan också den fria rörligheten mellan EU och Storbritannien av tjänster, personer och kapital. Ett tips är att ta del av Kommerskollegiums sammanställning för att få en bredare överblick av hur detta kan slå mot ditt företag.

Behöver du snabb hjälp och råd kring Brexit? Kontakta Make Trade’s Internationella Help-Desk –helpdesk@maketrade.se .

Vi har också samlat ett team av internationella konsulter från vårt digitala medlemsnätverk Sweden on the Go som kan hjälpa dig vidare med mer komplicerade Brexit problem.

En hård Brexit julklapp till Sinfs medlemmar – välkommen att beställa  Make Trade’s Importhandbok där vi tar upp vad som är viktigt att ha koll på när man importerar från länder utanför EU kostnadsfritt här.

God Jul och Gott Nytt år!

Önskar Charlotte Kalin och Make Trade

Photo: @fkaregan

 

Moving Floor Gotland AB to receive 2020 IWEC Award

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Moving Floor Gotland AB are the Swedish 2020 awardees at the International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge, IWEC. The conference is held virtually, Nov. 9th-10th, gathering some of the world’s most successful women-owned businesses. Peg Söderberg and Katja Lindvall, the two sisters and owners behind the Swedish company Moving Floor Gotland AB, will receive the 2020 IWEC Foundation Award, during the organization’s 13th annual conference held virtually this year due to the global pandemic. The conference, titled “Connecting Women Businesses Globally:  Sustainability in the Next Decade” has a strong focus on technology, business sustainability during crisis times, business exit strategies and more.   IWEC has during the last twelve years grown to become a powerful global network for women-owned businesses, including 384 awardees from around the world whose combined revenue exceeds US$35 billion per year and employ over 268,516 people worldwide.  

– We are thrilled to nominate Moving Floor Gotland AB from Sweden, says Charlotte Kalin, the CEO of Make Trade that is the partner of IWEC in Sweden. Moving Floor is a fantastic Swedish agribusiness technology company offering innovative products with a potential to transform the agribusiness industry globally to become more sustainable.

– Our mission is, says Peg who is the CEO of Moving Floor, to fundamentally improve global animal protein production by increasing yield and reducing CO2 emissions and the use of antibiotics. We want to disrupt the animal hus­bandry industry by bringing a completely automatic and digital cleaning solution to farm buildings, allowing for a more sustainable and circular system. With our technology, the farms reduce CO2 emissions with up to 19%. 

– Our products also tackle antibiotic resistance, one of the greatest future challenges to human health, says co-owner and sister Katja Lindvall.  The overuse of antibiotics is to a large extent tied to animal farming, and antibiotic resistance is predicted by the World Bank to take 10 million human lives per year from 2030. 

IWEC is a New York-based international economic empowerment organization exclusively for women business owners who want to scale up their businesses internationally.It was founded in 2007 with the assistance of the U.S. Department of State in collaboration with the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce (MCC), FICCI/FLO Chamber in New Delhi.  IWEC’s mission is to develop a global business network for successful women entrepreneurs, helping them gain and expand access to international markets by presenting a platform to exchange knowledge, experience and connections, and to promote dialogue among entrepreneurs and business leaders throughout the world. The conference 2020 will be awarding 35 new women owned businesses from Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Americas. 

How Covid-19 effects fifty women business owners from around the globe

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The powerful international women business network, IWEC (International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge) has presented a survey on how COVID-19 effects women owned businesses around the globe. IWEC’s network includes women-owned businesses that range in annual revenue from $1.5 million to over $2 billion. The industries cover manufacturing, food and beverage, professional services, technology, construction, travel and tourism to name a few. The IWEC Foundation is a global non-for-profit organization that helps women-owned businesses connect and grow their businesses internationally. Today, the IWEC’s awardee network has 411 Women-Owned Businesses & Partners from 41 countries – 17 of these business women are from Sweden. Altogether, IWEC awardee companies employ 268,516  and have a shared annual revenue of 35,000,000,000 USD. But this was before the Covid-19 crisis. 

50 international women business owners have been surveyed in the IWEC network and bring fresh insight on how the Covid-19 crisis effects their individual businesses. Most businesses have been adversely impacted, while a few others have actually needed to ramp up to meet increased demands. Business owners are forced to think outside-of-the-box, while trying to keep employees working (if possible) and paying their suppliers with little-to-no income coming into the businesses.

Below are a few top-line findings:

  • 70% of the respondents are greatly concerned with the negative impact of this pandemic.
  • Only 20% have had to lay off a significant number of employees.
  • 65% have lost customers, while 65% have also had their supply chains interrupted.
  • 63% expect decreases in overall revenue.
  • 52% of the participants are implementing cost containment initiatives and 49% are changing company financing plans.

Overall, survey participants are concerned not only with the immediate impacts of government requirements and business conditions, but also with defining the ‘new normal.’. How long will it take to develop a vaccine? What will people’s buying habits be in the future? How will international trade be impacted with supply chain and port issues? Many believe the economy and recovery will not begin until 2021.

The following are a few of the women and their responses:

Monica Schimenes de Oliviera-CEO, MCM Brand Group from Brazil-states “My business depends on having people together in the same place – events. I can’t do anything about it right now, because all events are canceled, so we’re creating virtual experiences, home events, designing branded gifts for end customers, working more on digital communication and finding ways to sell things we didn’t sell before to try to have some revenue, because today our revenue has stopped completely.”

Chandrika Chunital-CEO, Capital World Trading in Shanghai, China-oversees a garment manufacturing plant and deals in textile trading. She is negotiating with suppliers to make partial payments now, with balances due within two months. Customers are asking her to delay deliveries, which is holding up production and raw material consumption, blocking banking support and cash flow. . To counteract, she is scrambling to find more local orders from industries that she has not approached previously. “If I am unable to attract the business, I will give annual holidays to my workers during this time.”

And in Bahrain, Dr. Lamya Mohamed-CEO, Dr. Lamya’s Specialized Dental Centers-faces challenges in medical supply shortages and an inability to see patients. Even as the lockdowns are lifted, she is concerned that patients will be too afraid to come to the dental offices for treatment. Meanwhile, also in Bahrain, Ahlam Janahi-CEO, My Bakery-has seen increases in orders and production. She is maintaining close contact with all workers to ensure safety and is challenged with uneven production timing due primarily to erratic deliveries of raw materials from suppliers.

In South Africa, where the lockdowns were stringent even as incidence rates were lower than in most countries, Susan Louw-CEO, Chocolate Lace CC-has had to lay off 40% of her staff from her retail and manufacturing company. Her supply chain has decreased by 100%, as have customer orders. “? Even if the COVID-19 were to end today and everything could open up normally, it would take us 3 – 6 months to get back up and running effectively and efficiently.”  Also in South Africa, Shona Alexander-Shonaquip Social Enterprise, which is focused on creating and distributing products for the disabled-is concerned that there will be less concern for those with disabilities. 30% of her employees are disabled and 100% of her customers are disabled. She fears a redirection of funding and support for the community.

And from Afghanistan, Afsana Rahimi-CEO, Shayar Media Services-notes that “We are facing many problems in our country in addition to the virus. Our customers’ places of business are closed and no one is buying media services at this time. Our political situation is not good, there are security issues and many other challenges facing us. The virus has just made it worse for us.”

Finally, Vigdis Eriksen-CEO, Eriksen Translations in the U.S.-identifies “the decline of society and human suffering at all levels” as one of her main concerns.

View full survey and report here – https://www.iwecfoundation.org/news/iwec-foundation-releases-covid-19-survey-results/

Make Trade represents IWEC in Sweden, and has since 2012 selected 17 Swedish business women which have gone on to become awardees – see more here. 
Connect with IWEC directly through Nancy Ploeger at nancyp@iwecfoundation.org

www.iwecfoundation.org

 
 

Keeping up your International Business during Covid-19

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In order to maintain effective operations during the Covid-19 crisis your organisation will need to develop robust contingency plans. Although it may be too early to fully understand the severity of this crisis and its long-term implications, there are several steps your company can take now to help improve its long-term chances of survival. It is possible to deploy both crisis and risk management while proactively looking for unexpected business opportunities that might emerge from all this.

Make Trade has put together a dedicated group of international experts. The consultancy pool we have created through Sweden on the Go, with almost 100 quality assured international consultants, stands ready to support your business through this crisis. Not only are we available to give you immediate advice, but we are also able to direct you to those most suited to help. See contact details below.

Our top tips for keeping your international operations up:
– Reach out to your international network – both customer and suppliers. Strong positive messages will help you maintain relationships with customers and suppliers. Business relationships can be strengthened in times of crisis, especially in this kind of situation, as everyone is in the same boat.
– Use sales forecasts to analyse customer behaviour. Will the crisis lead to lasting changes in the market that your company needs to adjust to?
– Focus on your costs and efficiency, in particular measures that are able to reduce costs and / or increase productivity and operational efficiency.
-Improve your cash-flow. Get in touch with your bank, partners, key suppliers and customers to find a way forward. Quick and positive action might very well get you the results you need.
– Is your company able to take advantage of the government intervention packages? New economic measures are being announced daily; specifically designed to help stabilise the economy and help Swedish businesses through this challenging period. Your bank, business member organisations and business networks can help you navigate these. Remember also that other countries are putting together rescue packages to support business in their jurisdictions. These could also benefit your customers and suppliers, and therefore you.
– Try to reduce risks in the value chain by sharing them. Engaging in a positive dialogue with partners, suppliers and customers will allow you to jointly assess what you can do to manage and spread the risks in your value chain.
– Plan for currency fluctuations – Unfortunately currency fluctuations are a natural outcome of this crisis. It is therefore important for you to keep track of what is happening as well as putting the right strategies in place to manage these unprecedented fluctuations.
– Take care of your staff. By doing this you ensure that you have the human resources in place to move forward when the economy rebounds and it’s time to scale up your operations again. Your employees are your key asset! 
– Check your exposure to risk by going through the insurance policies and the business agreements you have put in place with your customers and suppliers. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for smaller companies to engage in “international business” without the necessary legal contracts. You should also check whether / how force majeure clauses apply to your business – both from your perspective on not being able to meet obligations and your suppliers not meeting obligations towards you. Going forward, review your insurance policies from a risk reduction perspective.  
– Plan B – Your company should have a Plan B in terms of finding new customers and suppliers. It should include considerations around changing production processes, amending your strategy, and establishing new channels to market.
– Don’t shy away from switching operations, products and customers. It may be that the Covid-19 crisis presents you with an opportunity to offer new solutions to a different customer base. In times of crisis, new ideas and solutions are often born. Be flexible!
– Review your organisation’s international operations. This crisis also presents an opportunity in terms of reviewing your current international operations. You may wish to look over your overall international strategy, as well as drilling down further into customer and supply focus, agreements and terms of delivery, insurance and logistics. By doing so you may find a way of diversifying into new business areas, reaching out to new customer segments and suppliers.

There is light at the end of the tunnel. Historically, economies have recovered quickly from this type of crisis and it’s important for your business to be ready when that happens.  Your organisation must therefore both be able to act in the short term to protect the business, but also keep an eye on the long game. By proactively preparing for the future, you will be in a position to take advantage of the substantial upswing that will inevitably follow; some suggest it may even be as soon as the end of this year.

Make Trade has put together a dedicated group of international experts. The consultancy pool we have created through Sweden on the Go, with almost 100 quality assured international consultants, stand ready to support your business through this crisis. Not only are we available to give you immediate advice, but we are also able to direct you to those most suited to help. Welcome to contact us directly on below mail.

– charlotte.kalin@maketrade.se

– ross.hopwood@maketrade.se

 

Celebrating International Women’s Day with engineer Joy Makumbe Founder and Owner, Majorlic Construction

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Joy Makumbe founded Majorlic Construction, an international engineering and greentech company operating in Uganda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe in 2008. Majorlic Construction’s current focus is on projects that incorporate water and sanitation infrastructure. An engineer herself and a member of Women in Engineering in Zimbabwe, Joy is strongly networked within the industry and indeed, recognised as an industry leader.

On #IWD2020 Sweden on the Go registered consultant Joy tells us why she is passionate about creating a new generation of Women engineers to follow in her footsteps:

“I am passionate about inspiring women and girls. I want them to see that engineering is not gender based. This means beefing up the current numbers of women joining tech professions and I am determined to use all available channels to achieve this! In this film below I aim to shatter typical myths about women in engineering.#iwd2020

My vision for the future is to publish a series of books targeting mostly teenagers. I want to give a young girl sitting on a street somewhere, the knowledge that she can be an Engineer if she wants to; inspiring her to look past the typical messages society is giving her.

It’s about catching them young. With that in mind, I intend to open a Tech Preschool in the very near future and am currently looking for project sponsors. I’d love to be able to open the doors of Tech Tots in the second half of this year.

For me 2020 is the year for making more impact in communities … while of course showing that we woman engineers rock!”

More information:

  • Connect with Joy on her  Sweden on the Go profile here
  • Register on Sweden on the Go, joining dozens of consultants who help connect Swedish expertise and product to international markets charlotte.kalin@maketrade.se , +46 70 568 8019
  • Find out more about the Joy Makumbe Trust, promoting women and girls in STEM on Facebook or connect on Twitter
    @JoyMakumbeTrust

Women's network make trade

Swedish business women behind Indiska and Isbjörn win International Women’s Enterpreneurial Challenge award

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Karin Lindahl, Indiska, and Maria Frykman, Isbjörn, will be receiving the 2019 IWEC – International Women’s Entrepreneurial Challenge award together with 39 successful businesswomen from 18 countries. The awardees will all be gathering in New Delhi on November 10-12 for the awards ceremony and conference. The Swedish businesswomen will be part of a powerful network of 370+ businesswomen from 40 countries running international companies, with a total shared annual revenue of 30 billion USD and over 262 000 employees.

Isbjörn of Sweden is not just about trendy outdoor gear for our kids. We are a lifestyle brand appealing to families that  want to make a sustainable choice, says Maria Frykman, the CEO and co-founder of Isbjörn. With our endurable outdoor wear, we want to inspire and encourage young families all over the world to enjoy and explore the outdoors together. We like to say that we equip the adventurer of tomorrow. The brand continues to grow profitably each year internationally and is now available in 15 countries. Our vision is to take on both the US and Chinese markets, and I am looking forward to going to Delhi and getting inspiration and business contacts from my fellow IWEC sisters for this.

Indiska is one of Sweden’s most well-known interior and lifestyle companies, with an over hundred-year-old trade relationship in India, where they have a production office and 80% of their suppliers.  I feel very much at home and am very proud to collect the IWEC award here in Delhi, says Karin. She became the CEO and owner of Indiska, almost two years ago, and immediately started a major turn-around to get the company back on its feet financially. Our team is now working hard to make Indiska a successful company while the retail business in undergoing major changes, says Karin. We have great strengths that we believe will carry us through, like outstanding brand recognition, unique style in products and attractive store locations. Karins international vision is to expand its stores and e-commerce beyond Scandinavia and Germany, including to India where she sees great potential to build a new customer base.

Charlotte Kalin, Make Trade, has been the Swedish caretaker for IWEC since 2012. We now have 17 Swedish IWEC awardees taking part in this dynamic and growing international women business network, says Charlotte. It is a privilege to each year welcome new IWEC awardees which have the courage to run their own business and the ambition to scale up internationally. This year’s awardees happen to both be from the retail sector complementing each other on indoor and outdoor lifestyle products.  

The 17 Swedish IWEC awardees are: Pernilla Stålhane, Pallmax and Maud Spencer, Svalson (awarded 2012 in Barcelona), Ida Backlund, Rapunzel and Signhild Arnegård Hansen, Svenska Lantchips (2013 in Lima), Karin Söderlind, House of Dagmar, Karin Bodin, Polarbröd and Emy Blixt, Swedish Hasbeens (2014 in Stockholm), Britt Marie Stegs, Hälsingestintan and Isabelle Löwengrip and Pingis Hadenius, Löwengrip Care and Color (2016 in Brussels), Marie Lindqvist Pahlstad and Jenny Helldén from Zilenzio and Helene Åkerström Hartman from Orbaden Spa & Resort (2017 in Seattle), Marie Walleberg from Imse Vimse and Ulrika Nilsson from Secure State (2018 in Shanghai), Karin Lindahl from Indiska and Maria Frykman from Isbjörn (2019 in Delhi).

2019 years IWEC awards conference will focus on the theme “Connecting Women Businesses Globally: Leading the Way to Innovation and Integration.” Her Royal Highness Princess Noor Asem of Jordan will be the conference Chairwoman. Lena Sellgren, chief economist from Business Sweden along with professor Balaji Parthasarathy at the International Institute of Information Technology in Bangalore will be among the keynote speakers giving their global outlook on the economy and trade.

IWEC is an international economic empowerment organization exclusively for women business owners, formed in 2007 by chambers from New York, Barcelona and India. IWEC’s mission is to develop a global business network for successful women entrepreneurs, helping them gain and expand access to international markets by presenting a platform to exchange knowledge, experience and connections, and to promote dialogue among women entrepreneurs and business leaders throughout the world.

More information:

 

Everything you need to know about importing. Welcome to our upcoming seminars!

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Welcome to the upcoming seminars we are running on “Everything you need do know about Importing” together with Sveriges Industriförening (SINF), Nyföretagarcentrum i Göteborg, Östsvenska Handelskammaren  och Handelskammaren Mälardalen. 

The Import handbook goes through the main critical areas for importing, like identifying and verifying your business model, managing purchasing and your supplier relationship, risk assessment, legal issues and best practices, logistics and documentation, customs procedures and regulations, ensuring sustainability and handling cultural differences. The handbook and seminars are co-financed by Tillväxtverket. 

Order the import handbook (in Swedish) here. 

 

 

Make Trade launches Swedish Import Handbook

Make Trade launches Swedish Import Handbook

Make Trade today lauched the Import handbook targeting Swedish small and medium sized businesses (SME). The handbook goes through what you as a company need to know to suceed with your imports. Together with a handful of Swedish business organisations Make Trade will be doing a road show this autumn targeting SME’s. We also hope the book will be helpful for the many foreign born entrepreneurs who start companies in Sweden, and where importing often is an important part of the business. 

Today’s launch was done in Malmö in cooperation with Business Navigation in Sweden, IKF (the International Women’s Association) and Coompanion.

The Import handbook goes through the main critical areas for importing, like identifying and verifying your business model, managing purchasing and your supplier relationship, risk assessment, legal issues and best practices, logistics and documentation, customs procedures and regulations, ensuring sustainability and handling cultural differences. The handbook is co-financed by Tillväxtverket. 

Download the import handbook (in Swedish) here. 

Make Trade SME International Expo2020 Initiative

Make Trade is launching an SME International Expo2020 Initiative for the benefit of Swedish small and medium sized businesses. As a newly appointed Official Organisation to the Swedish Government’s Expo2020 Sweden Committee, our main focus is to reach out to – and facilitate for – Swedish small and medium sized companies. We will help SMEs make use of the Expo2020 by improving exports and international business with the Gulf Region and the world. 

In this capacity we therefore invite Swedish small and medium sized businesses to join our SME initiative; participating in business missions to Dubai and the region which are scheduled during the Expo period (Oct 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021). We envisage between 50 and 80 companies joining us on 3 to 4 Expo business missions.

We are especially targeting 4 strategic areas: 

  • Green & the Environment – A wide range of business particularly in packaging, recycling, technology and services.
  • Industry & subcontractors – Infrastructure, Logistics & Materials
  • Lifestyle and Design – Food & Beverage, Furniture, Leisure, etc.
  • Women-run international businesses

The program is open for early bird registration from June 12, 2019.

You can contact us for more information in the following ways:

expo2020@maketrade.se

charlotte.kalin@maketrade.se / +46 70 568 8019

ross.hopwood@maketrade.se / +46 73 834 24 34

See more here.

Photo above: The Forest, the Swedish Pavilion at Expo 2020 in Dubai. Photo by Alessandro Ripellino Arkitekter/Studio Adrien Gardère/Luigi Pardo Architetti

Expo 2020 Official Organisation

 

 

A Corruption Crisis – avoidance and management tactics

By Dani Cohen and Sandra Sowray, Prolog Consulting

Volkswagen, Enron, Anderson Consulting, McKinsey, KPMG. These are – or were – some of the world’s best known brands. They are also companies which have been embroiled in corruption scandals, grabbing media headlines for months across the globe. Some are still with us, having weathered the storm, others have been pummelled into oblivion, unable to overcome the reputational damage associated with such a corruption crisis.

There are few corporate crises which can threaten the continued existence of a company as significantly as the discovery of corruption. Big or small, an individual or group, private sector or involving the bribery of government officials, any of these can escalate into media headlines which will send investors, shareholders, customers, employees, and other stakeholders running for the hills.   The impact of corruption, whether it happens inadvertently, through extortion, pressure, or willingly, through the actions of some executives or employees, will be significant.

The risk of falling foul of a corruption crisis is increased for companies operating in countries outside their home base, where the business environment, customs and politics may force a company to engage in corrupt or unethical business practices in order to compete.  A corruption scandal not only affects a company’s reputation in the country where it has been perpetrated, but it can also significantly damage that company’s global reputation by eroding trust.

It also comes at a significant cost.  In addition to fines by local and global regulators and law enforcement, which can run into billions of US dollars, a company also needs to take into account the cost of restitution and remediation, the loss of exceptional employees, and rebuilding a reputation.

In a world where shareholders, employees and customers are demanding greater accountability, and where corrupt actions are easily exposed through social media, whistleblowers, data leaks, and global investigative journalism, it is imperative that a crisis is managed quickly, appropriately and responsibly.

So what can companies do to prevent, prepare for, and to manage such a crisis, should it occur?

First of all, ethical behaviour requires leadership commitment to infallible values, morals and ethics. We need to change hiring criteria to include a far stronger emphasis on ensuring leadership candidates embody the morals needed to drive ethical leadership. Companies chase executives who will drive competitiveness, growth and financial targets, but it may be time that we place the same amount of importance on driving an unrelenting commitment to values. 

The South African state capture example shows us that in most cases, those in leadership positions, both within the public and private sectors, lacked the ethical fortitude to steer clear of temptation. Get the leadership piece right and you’re halfway there.

Crisis preparation and training is critical  

Some of the biggest global corruption crises were made worse because companies and their internal teams were not prepared, trained or ready to effectively manage the issue. To be prepared, management and senior staff have to undergo annual crisis training, which should include simulations of the worst disasters and scandals that could occur and how to respond to them. This includes putting in place systems to mitigate and manage them.  This is over and above the regular training on understanding and implementing a company’s overall internal crisis strategy and protocols. Being prepared could very well mean the difference between a company’s survival or its demise.

Your stakeholders are going to judge you on how you respond to a corruption crisis.  Although ‘doing the right thing’ may seem the obvious course of action, it is necessary to interrogate what ‘the right thing’ is against the backdrop of the company’s sustainability and values, but also against the current local political and socio-economic environment.  Keep doing this, because while your values might not change, the environment in which this crisis exists most certainly will. 

If you’re a corporate involved in a corruption scandal that involves many actors in both business and government, it is critical that you manage your involvement carefully.  Corporates, by the very nature that they are accountable to shareholders, customers and other stakeholders, can quickly become the lightning rod for civil action, especially, as is the case in South Africa, politicians seemed to act with impunity.  When a nation is angry and hurt, its people will default to those it can hold to account, the low hanging fruit.  In South Africa, a number of prominent voices rose against companies involved in the state capture project in very short order.  These voices included big business, organised business, civil society organisations, political parties, activists, and the general public.  They cancelled contracts with companies involved, expelled them from their associations, spoke out against them and called for the public to boycott them.  

While you can never manage a corruption crisis away, you can decrease the risk if your stakeholders believe you are doing the right thing. This strategy has to be centred on working backwards from answering these four critical questions:

  1. Did you respond appropriately?
  2. Did you hold those responsible to account?
  3. Did you interrogate how you got here, and put appropriate measures in place to prevent this in future?
  4. Did you make amends?

There is no comprehensive playbook for managing a corruption crisis, each one is unique.  However, if you take a principled and values-based approach and follow these guidelines, you are more likely to survive.

If you have any questions on Make Trade’s projects on anti-corruption in developing countries please contact charlotte.kalin@maketrade.se

The comprehensive E-Manual below – Managing a Corruption Crisis gives further guidance.

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