Singapore, 7 December: This year certainly wasn’t a return to normal, but rather a ‘new normal’. As 2022 begins to kick into gear, we’re taking a moment to look back on ways we helped international traders adapt to the new landscape and excel in the fast-paced global economy.
Let’s take a quick look at some of our highlights, from launching trade finance course bundles for targeted learning and starting our podcast series, ‘Trade Insider’ to publishing a range of comprehensive guides for our members and alumni community and getting accreditations for our certificate programmes from international bodies.
Here’s what happened in 2021:
We launched a variety of trainings to enhance trade skills worldwide
As the world continues to change, so does the way we work. That is why we launched a number of trainings in new formats throughout the year to help professionals keep up to date with today’s ever-changing business community. We…
– launched a new certificate on the Common Reporting Standard (CCRS)
In January, we launched the Certificate on the Common Reporting Standard. Designed for compliance, finance, and tax professionals working in financial institutions, the advanced-level programme provides an in-depth understanding of the CRS, an international reporting regime for the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts. The curriculum helps practitioners understand how to incorporate the regime as part of a strategic compliance operating model, as well as ways to navigate common issues while onboarding clients or reviewing changes in circumstances, including preparing them for reporting exercises and audits.
– developed a podcast titled, ‘Trade Insider’
To keep our community members up to date with the latest trends and best practices within the global trade industry, we launched ‘Trade Insider’. In this podcast series, we interview global experts, as well as our alumni, on their insights into the world of trade finance, international trade, as well as regulation, and compliance.
– started selling ICC eBooks on our website
We’re proud to be a one-stop shop for all our community’s training needs. That’s why we added a range of ICC’s bestselling eBooks to our website. From model contracts and trade finance rules to the regulations of Incoterms® 2020 and the ICC Guide to Export/Import, trade practitioners can now purchase the world business organization’s most popular and authoritative resources straight from our ICC Academy website.
– rolled out the trade finance course bundles
To help our community members gain mastery on a particular trade finance topic, we created dedicated course bundles. Candidates can now improve their understanding of trade finance topics from beginner to advance in just eight hours by combining a range of our online courses, including those on Documentary Credits, Supply Chain Finance, Guarantees, and Standby Letters of Credit.
We updated our flagship certifications to keep our curriculum fit for purpose
The educational needs of trade professionals and organisations, especially since the start of the COVID pandemic, have constantly been evolving to stay in line with the complex and rapidly changing global business environment in which they work. To ensure our candidates have a seamless and improved learning experience, we refreshed our flagship trade finance and international business certifications – the Global Trade Certificate, Certified Trade Finance Professional, Export/Import Certificate, and Incoterms® 2020 Certificate – with new features and functionalities. Today, our curriculum promotes the most current research-based best practices and allows professionals, in more than 170 countries, to keep pace with the international trade landscape.
We created free comprehensive guides to ensure continuous learning for our community members
Being the educational arm of ICC, we understand the value of continuous learning. In collaboration with the newly appointed members of the ICC Banking Commission, we started drafting comprehensive guides, covering a wide range of topics, from Islamic finance and its impact on trade finance and sustainability in export finance to the difference between transport and logistics and how CRS should fit into a holistic financial compliance strategy.
We ran a series to showcase our graduates’ journey to the top
On International Women’s Day, we ran a new series titled, ‘Women in trade finance’, where our ICC graduates shared their career journeys, what helped them reach senior leadership, and their advice to women wanting to follow their path. These women not only shared how they discovered their strengths but also their success in setting goals to break the glass ceiling that barred them from previously entering leadership positions, and defined their own personal definition of success in the process. Graduates included women from Lloyds Bank, SEB, Emirates NDB, BNP Paribas and more.
We were recognised with an award and accreditations
In September, we won the Brandon Hall Group HCM Excellence Award under the “Best Advance in Business Strategy” category for our robust e-commerce powered Learning Management System, designed for B2B and B2C clients. In collaboration with our technology partner Kineo, we developed our e-learning system with an intuitive user interface and a range of features designed to augment e-Learning user experiences.Not only that, this year our international business certificates, the Export/Import Certificate, Incoterms ® 2020, and NVOCC Bill of Lading Certificate were accredited by the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) as part of their continuing education programme, allowing our community to be recognised even further in their continuous learning path. Not to forget, all our certifications are already accredited by the London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF), the Institute of Banking & Finance Singapore (IBF), Global Trade Professionals Alliance (GTPA), and Bankers Association for Finance and Trade (BAFT).
We offered scholarships to ensure learning for all
As part of an ICC partnership with TRALAC, UPS, and West Blue Consulting, we offered 10 scholarships for our Export/Import Certificate to mobilise women small business owners in the Women Traders in the African Continental Free Trade Area. The alliance provides SMEs with timely resources, trade management tools, and supply chain information.Moreover, we offered 24 scholarships to candidates from Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Peru, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Sudan Turkey, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
For more information, please contact
Priyanka Satapathy
Communications and Events Manager
Priyanka.Satapathy@iccacademy.com.sg