ITIC welcomes Senior Trade Consultant Tracey McClurg to the team. We asked her about her role and the challenges and opportunities ahead for exporters.

What attracted you to the ITIC role? 

“Having met Michael Carter and some of his team members at ITIC I was really impressed with the collective depth of knowledge that the team possessed. I have always been interested in the export space; it’s complex, dynamic and fast-paced. So, when the opportunity presented itself to join them, I jumped at the chance.”

What excites you most about the work within the ITIC team? 

“The people mostly! I’m excited to evolve into this team, and to learn about the wonderful opportunities that we can present for SMEs wishing to connect their products to the global community and to help enhance the reputation of Australia as a great trading nation.”

What areas do you specialise in? 

“Essentially, I consider my main area of expertise to be in stakeholder engagement and business development. For the past 15 years, I’ve had the pleasure of working locally and internationally across numerous sectors and industries. This colourful and varied career portfolio has enabled me to enjoy interacting with hundreds of different types of businesses and management professionals … connecting dots where others may not see the opportunities has been the part of my career that I have enjoyed the most. For the past four years, I have been directly working in the SME space in Western Australia and understand the unique challenges that often present themselves to business owners operating in one of the most remote cities in the world! I love connecting people, bright minds, resources and pretty much the whole nine yards to helping businesses thrive.” 

What are the biggest opportunities for WA exporters right now? 

“As we continue to re-connect to the global markets following the pandemic, emerging technologies are changing the way we can trade, and the way we will trade. Businesses can take the guesswork out of supplying product internationally through digitisation — for example, measuring temperatures throughout the cold chain supply process to better understand the blind spots, particularly at the critical control points. But more than that, digital trade encompasses all goods sold via e-commerce platforms and electronic facilitation such as paperless trading and digital certificates — improving productivity and simplifying customs procedures. There is an old saying, ‘if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it’ and certainly the biggest opportunity for WA exporters should be adopting technologies to keep the guesswork out of the picture.”

What are some of the challenges that exist for exporters, which you can help with?  

“In my book, knowledge is always king. Now more than ever before, Australian businesses need as much help and advice as they can get, especially in the face of geopolitical challenges and global supply chain disruptions. I would say the biggest challenge — and ask me again in six months — is simply being armed with the right info at the right time to be able to act strategically. I look forward to assisting any current or new ITIC client with their export strategies.”

 

Get in touch with Tracey to see how your business can grow via tracey.mcclurg@cciwa.com.

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