Defense & Aerospace Specialist

$60,133 - $99,220/Yr

AIT Worldwide Logistics - Palatine, IL

Full-time - Mid Level

Palatine, IL

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

About the position

The Defense & Aerospace Specialist will be responsible for performing day to day activities required to operate and support compliance with USG and AIT regulatory policy/procedures relating to international and domestic freight forwarding within the Government and Aerospace vertical. This position will also be directly involved with Project Programs that could include offsite project management. Including, but not limited to; charter operations for both air & ocean programs as well as trade shows and conventions. This role is not a traditional 9-5 role. We expect our team to be ready to execute critical missions at any given time.

Responsibilities

• Act as the primary contact for designated clients/programs within the Government and Aerospace vertical
• Provide operational support and guidance as part of a control tower to company stations which includes quoting, routing, and executing freight shipments across multiple transportation modes and services (domestic, international, air, ocean, cross border, charter, and hand carry operations)
• Provide full operational services when required direct to customer
• Troubleshooting complex inquiries to resolution with world class customer service skills
• Facilitate international shipment flow by coordinating with internal/external customers, AIT branches, transportation providers, government agencies and overseas agents to ensure operational excellence
• Responsible for day-to-day operational compliance with USG and AIT regulatory policies and procedures as well as anticipating and resolving issues
• Work closely with the Global Compliance team to develop and maintain procedures for maintaining compliance with U.S. government laws and regulations including, but not limited to, ITAR/EAR/CFR compliance, import/export documentation, creating and updating SOPs, and regulatory changes
• Work directly with AIT departments/stations to maintain and manage trade compliance as well as educate internal and external customers in trade compliance
• Maintain current knowledge of import/export compliance and attend appropriate seminars and/or compliance training as needed
• Conduct research in the area of Government and Aerospace and stay abreast with current regulations
• Develop and manage SOPs for internal and external clients and review/update as needed
• Oversee & manage multiple accounts both operationally and financially
• Make high level decisions on the fly in order to meet required delivery dates (RDDs)/deadlines
• Must be able to maintain a professional demeanor while dealing with clients of very high caliber
• Have the understanding and ability to work on multi-million-dollar projects with high complexity into austere environments & locations
• May be required to travel to project locations to provide supervision and onsite services for the client
• Maintain relative availability for afterhours phone calls & operations
• Responsible for maintaining confidentiality and need to know information
• All other duties as the business deemed necessary

Requirements

• High School Diploma/GED required
• 5+ years of international operations freight forwarding experience
• 1+ year of CargoWise experience highly preferred
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general industry documentation/communication
• Must exhibit excellent oral and written communication skills
• Strong analytical and organization skills, attention to detail and ability to multi-task
• Must be extremely detail and deadline oriented
• Must bring energy and enthusiasm to team efforts
• Ability to work in a team environment as well as independently
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients and customers
• HazMat Certification: IATA, IMDG and 49CFR highly preferred
• Knowledge of International Air & Ocean export and import business with emphasis on DOD/DOS (Department of Defense and State) regulations
• Ability to function in a high volume and fast pace environment

Benefits

• Medical
• Prescription
• Health Savings Account
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Dental
• Vision
• Life
• AD&D
• Disability
• Supplemental Health
• Employee Support
• Paid Parental Leave
• Pet Insurance
• 401(k)
• Tuition Reimbursement
• up to 10 to 20 days of vacation (depending on tenure)
• 2 personal days
• 1 floating holiday
• 5 sick days
• 5 volunteer hours
• 6 company holidays (plus Veterans Day for Veterans) annually