Useful Software And Document Tools

Dear Import/Export Compliance Manager,

Are there any types of documents, software, etc. that you learned about in the workplace, but you now consider to be indispensable? 

Unable To Come Up With A Witty Name in New York

Dear Unable To Come Up With A Witty Name,

Don’t you wish that, after you first entered the ‘real world’ and had been kicking around in your first real job for a few months, that someone who had been out there a while would sit you down and teach you the stuff that you REALLY need to know?  The stuff that isn’t necessarily taught in school and might be known by tons of people around you, but no one stops to think about ‘hey, this works great for me, maybe it will work great for that noob over there?’  It’s amazing how much stuff we all know yet don’t think about passing on to others to help them.  Are we too self-absorbed?  Are we hesitant because we’re afraid of being patronizing?  Are we not confident enough in our own abilities to be able to teach others?  The Import/Export Compliance Manager decided a long time ago to err on the side of being patronizing, overconfident and/or annoying and thinks others should, too. 

So, without further ado, here is the list of documents and software that anyone new to import/export compliance, after they have figured out what HTS stands for and learned a fun fact to tell the friends/family outside of work (hint: look up 19 CFR 12.98 concerning switchblade knives), should know about, either for current or eventual use:

RASI Matrices (http://sixsigmatutorial.com/what-is-raci-download-raci-rasci-matrix-templates-six-sigma/141/ – Also known as RASCI or RACI Matrices, RASI stands for Responsible, Approves, Supports and Informed.  When you have an activity going on that involves multiple people from multiple departments, each being involved at different levels for different actions, a RASI is, in the view of The Import/Export Compliance Manager, the single best document that can quickly and easily show everyone a) what is going on and b) what each person’s level of involvement is.  The bureaucrat in The Import/Export Compliance Manager also likes having a document of record to adjudicate disputes, make sure everyone is on the same page and, of course, cover yourself.

Microsoft Visio – Along the lines of the RASI, Visio https://products.office.com/en-us/Visio/microsoft-visio-2013-top-features-diagram-software is the best software the Import/Export Compliance Manager has seen for showing process flows, basically outlining all steps in a process, who is responsible for each step and what should happen for the situations where there are alternate paths.  If you are familiar with process flows, but are making them in PowerPoint, just stop now; having Visio will save you so much time it’s well worth the cost.  There may be better software packages out there, but the only one the Import/Export Compliance Manager has uses is Visio.

Excel Functions – The Import/Export Compliance Manager beats Excel like a dead horse but that’s because it’s so useful and universal.  Excel can do lots of crazy things that are slightly difficult, but don’t let that stop you from learning the following:

-        The VLOOKUP Function

-        Pivot Tables

-        Graphs, particularly simple bar graphs and pie charts.  Nothing conveys important data faster than a graph.

-        Just overall becoming familiar with functions in Excel so that, when faced with a perceived limitation, your first thought becomes, “I wonder if there’s a function to help with this.”  Chances are, there is.

-        Freeze Panes.  You may be able to navigate your spreadsheet without it.  However, those of us who need to have the column names always be visible will always have to take that extra step of freezing panes ourselves to view your data.  Or maybe it’s just the Import/Export Compliance Manager.

There are a lot more small things in Excel that you won’t necessarily learn in any class or book.  Find a co-worker who is an Excel whiz (the Finance Department is a great place to look), sit down and watch what they do and examine their most complicated spreadsheets.  You’ll be surprised what you didn’t know that can make your spreadsheets better and/or save you oodles of time.

Forms in Microsoft Word – If your company hasn’t sprung for a souped-up version of Adobe for creating forms, you can do a quick-and-dirty version in Word under the ‘Developer’ tab.  Be sure to restrict editing to only filling out forms.  Most people don’t want to fill out a form by hand anymore and thus having a fillable-form via computer may endear you to your colleagues who see you are trying to save them time.  If you can get Adobe, though, its functionality is much better.

These are all things that the Import/Export Compliance Manager wished he had learned sooner and/or wished he would not have had to figure out on his own.  Each is relevant, not only to the field of import/export compliance, but in many compliance-related positions that you might find yourself in.  As always, the above items might not necessarily work for you or you might have as-good or better tools that you can recommend.  And remember, as you amass your own list of indispensable documents and software, be sure to pass them along.  Don’t pull up the ladder behind you!