As a trade compliance professional I am seldom the life of the party. I find it difficult to talk to others about my work. If I tell fellow party goers, I am a broker they either ask for real estate or investment advice. It's not as if I can impress them with the elegance of one of my harmonized code justifications either. It isn't long before I find myself alone in the corner evaluating my host's housekeeping standards.

What to do? Instead, I tell them I am in the import / export business and with a wink insinuate I am really an undercover agent for an undisclosed federal agency. It brings a certain cache to the conversation, a bit of Mission Impossible blended with James Bond. In a way I can drink my martini both shaken and stirred.

What does this all have to do with trade compliance? Well nothing of course other than it is a reminder that we have the same challenge at work gaining the interest and attention of our colleagues. Posing as an international spy at work is not an option, unless that is you are indeed an international spy.

No, you are going to have to take less subtle and less glamorous measures to gain the attention of your colleagues. These include:

Through it all you need to smile, even if through gritted teeth. Remember you are selling a concept to your colleagues that is alien to them. Trade compliance, however, is not an optional purchase for your company. You have no choice but to accept this mission.