Job Purpose
The Director, Global Trade Compliance will lead and continuously evolve the company’s global trade compliance program across imports, exports, sanctions, forced-labor compliance, customs governance, and emerging international trade regulatory requirements.
This role is accountable for setting the enterprise trade compliance strategy, establishing global governance, strengthening controls, enabling scalable processes and systems, and leading the team responsible for compliant movement of goods, technology, technical data, and services across borders.
The Director will serve as the company’s senior trade compliance leader and primary point of contact for regulatory inquiries, audits, disclosures, and government engagement. This role will partner closely with operations, supply chain, sourcing, transportation, finance, tax, legal, engineering, IT, and executive leadership to reduce regulatory risk while enabling business growth, supply chain resilience, and efficient speed-to-ship.
Company Description
Progress Rail stands at the intersection of legacy and innovation—driving the future of rail with a pioneering spirit. Since its founding in 1983, the company has grown to become one of the world’s largest and most trusted providers of railroad products, services, and technologies. Today, Progress Rail delivers a comprehensive portfolio of cost-effective solutions to railway customers around the globe. From the rails themselves to the EMD® locomotives that ride them, the company’s products are in operation across more than 100 countries—powering progress and connecting communities. In 2006, Progress Rail joined Caterpillar Inc., further strengthening its ability to lead the rail industry with cutting-edge technology, unmatched expertise, and a commitment to excellence. At Progress Rail, the team is not just building the future of rail—they are making history every day.
Key Job Elements
Global Trade Compliance Strategy and Governance
- Lead the global trade compliance strategy across all applicable regions, including the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Canada, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific.
- Develop, maintain, and continuously improve the company’s global trade compliance framework, including policies, standards, procedures, internal controls, training, monitoring, and reporting.
- Establish practical, risk-based governance processes that support compliant business execution while enabling operational efficiency and commercial objectives.
- Serve as a strategic advisor to senior leadership on trade compliance risks, regulatory developments, and business impacts.
- Maintain alignment with applicable laws, enterprise procedures, internal controls, and Internal Audit expectations.
- Develop and maintain relationships with key internal stakeholders to provide visibility to trade compliance risks, drive accountability, and support compliance from the top down.
Import, Export, Sanctions, and Customs Compliance
- Oversee global import and export compliance activities, including classification, country of origin, valuation, marking, recordkeeping, licensing, restricted-party screening, and government reporting.
- Provide executive oversight of HTS and ECCN classification processes, including governance over classification data, documentation, quality review, and escalation.
- Lead compliance with U.S. Customs and Border Protection requirements, Export Administration Regulations, Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions requirements, and applicable foreign trade regulations.
- Oversee Importer of Record and Exporter of Record governance, including accountability, documentation, and controls.
- Manage sanctions and export control compliance, including foreign direct product rule analysis, end-use and end-user screening, license strategy, license exception use, deemed exports, technology transfers, and controlled technical data.
- Monitor and advise the business on regulatory changes affecting global trade, including developments involving Russia, Belarus, China, restricted parties, high-risk jurisdictions, and emerging export control regimes.
- Provide oversight of customs audits, government inquiries, requests for information, notices of action, penalty notices, disclosures, and mitigation responses.
Tariffs, Duties, and Trade Cost Management
- Track and report the business impact of Section 232, Section 301, and other tariff actions, including rate changes, timing, sourcing impacts, and pricing considerations.
- Advise sourcing, commercial, finance, and pricing teams on duty exposure, tariff mitigation opportunities, exclusion availability, and customs planning considerations.
- Partner with tax, finance, and supply chain leadership to support compliant duty management and cost optimization strategies.
Third-Party Provider and Logistics Governance
- Provide oversight of customs brokers, freight forwarders, carriers, consultants, and other third-party trade compliance service providers.
- Establish performance expectations, statements of work, rate structures, operating procedures, escalation paths, and compliance requirements for third-party providers.
- Coordinate with transportation and logistics leadership to ensure broker and forwarder activities align with company procedures, regulatory expectations, and business needs.
- Maintain effective governance over provider performance, issue resolution, audit support, and corrective action plans.
Operational Excellence, Systems, and Data Governance
- Lead trade compliance process improvement across import, export, customs, and regulatory reporting activities.
- Partner with IT and business process owners on trade-related systems, ERP transformation initiatives, master data governance, automation, reporting, and system controls.
- Serve as the business liaison for import, export, and customs operations activities during system discovery, design,
Qualifications and Experience
Key job elements continued
implementation, testing, and post-go-live support.
- Drive data integrity for classification, origin, valuation, restricted-party screening, license management, broker instructions, and government reporting.
- Use data analytics, program metrics, and risk indicators to evaluate program effectiveness and support executive reporting.
Emerging Trade Regulatory Requirements
- Oversee the company’s compliance strategy for emerging trade and sustainability-related customs regimes, including the European Union Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
- Establish processes for emissions data capture, supplier attestations, registry submissions, documentation retention, and internal reporting.
- Monitor emerging regulatory trends affecting global trade, including supply chain transparency, ESG-related trade measures, sanctions expansion, tariff actions, and customs enforcement priorities.
Acquisitions, Divestitures, Bids, and Commercial Transactions
- Conduct trade compliance due diligence for acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, and other strategic transactions.
- Support bid, proposal, and contract reviews for import, export, sanctions, customs, and restricted-party risks.
- Coordinate with legal, tax, finance, sourcing, and commercial teams to identify and resolve trade compliance risks before contract execution or transaction close.
- Provide practical guidance to business teams on contract terms, jurisdictional requirements, license needs, customs responsibilities, and documentation requirements.
Training, Communication, and Change Leadership
- Lead risk-based trade compliance training and change management for relevant functions, including logistics, sourcing, engineering, order management, finance, sales, transportation, and operations.
- Develop job-specific curricula, annual refresher training, targeted communications, and escalation guidance.
- Promote a culture of compliance ownership by translating complex regulatory requirements into clear, practical business guidance.
- Communicate effectively with employees at all levels, from shipping and receiving personnel to executive leadership.
People Leadership
- Lead, mentor, and develop the International Trade Compliance team, including import/export operations personnel and trade compliance professionals.
- Establish clear roles, accountability, performance expectations, development plans, and succession depth within the function.
- Build a high-performing, collaborative team capable of supporting global business needs and adapting to regulatory change.
- Foster a culture of integrity, accountability, continuous improvement, and practical risk-based decision-making.
Available Locations: South Lake, TX; Lagrange, IL; and Albertville, AL
Essential & Physical Activities Functions
- Strength – Constant sitting. Occasional standing. Rare walking, lifting;
- Motion – Repetitive motions and hand/eye coordination associated with research and office communications;
- Vision/Hearing Requirements – Communications, including both talking and hearing;
- Work Environment & Safety – Position will typically be located in an office environment and general office safety requirements;
Emotional Demands - Expected to lead/train a team of 11-20 personnel
Benefits
Compensation and benefits offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, job level, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, individual performance, and experience. Please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Progress Rail.**
- Competitive Salary
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401(k) plan with up to 6% company match (no waiting period with immediate vesting)
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Medical/Dental/Vision/Life/Disability Insurance
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Supplemental Accident, Critical Care, and Hospital Insurance available along with an HDHP and HSA with seed money
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Flexible Spending Accounts
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Paid Vacation
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Paid Holidays
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Paid Time-Off (PTO)
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Employee Assistance Plan
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Education Assistance Program
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Employee Recognition Programs
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Site specific Production and Incentive Plans
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Site specific Step and Skill Level Wage Adjustment Plans
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Site Specific Relocation and Sign-on Bonus Programs
- Benefits eligibility varies by job position, full-time/part-time and regular/temporary status. The provisions of the plan documents control such benefits.
**Subject to position, eligibility, and plan guidelines.