Strategic Freight & Trade Compliance Lead

Advocate Group; Harwell; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company Bonus Scheme

Private Medical Insurance

Life Assurance

Critical Illness Cover

Employee Assistance Programme

Employee Purchase Scheme

Birthday Day Off

Holiday Purchase Scheme

Cycle to Work Scheme

Bring Your Dog to Work Policy

Flexible Working Location Policy

Free Onsite Parking with EV Charging

Employee Volunteering Opportunities

Referral Programme

Job summary

The Advocate Group is partnering with Ariat to recruit a Freight & Trade Compliance Specialist. This hybrid role will support inbound freight and cross-border compliance across the UK and Europe, helping transition from a freight forwarder-led model to a directly managed operation.

You will work with US teams and European operations to establish new processes, drive efficiencies and ensure regulatory compliance in a fast-paced consumer goods environment.

Qualifications

• 3-5+ years in transportation, logistics or trade compliance.
• Strong knowledge of UK/EU import processes and CDS.
• Experience with tariff classification and duties optimization.
• Ability to work with cross-border teams and regulators.

Responsibilities

• Manage inbound transportation across ocean, air, trucking and cross-border movements in UK/Europe.
• Develop transportation strategies to improve service levels, routing and costs.
• Monitor carrier performance, forecasting accuracy, booking timeliness and KPIs.
• Lead trade compliance, ensuring adherence to UK/EU customs regulations and import requirements.
• Provide expertise on tariff classification, customs valuation, rules of origin and duty optimisation.
• Partner with brokers, freight providers, suppliers and regulatory authorities to resolve issues.
• Support audits, regulatory enquiries and sustainability/traceability initiatives.

Skills

3-5+ years experience

UK/EU import processes

CDS knowledge

Tariff classification

Trade compliance

Job description

The Advocate Group is partnering with Ariat to recruit a Freight & Trade Compliance Specialist. This hybrid role will support inbound freight and cross-border compliance across the UK and Europe, helping transition from a freight forwarder-led model to a directly managed operation.

You will work with US teams and European operations to establish new processes, drive efficiencies and ensure regulatory compliance in a fast-paced consumer goods environment.