This post shares a strategic recap of the webinar “The New Automotive Trade Reality – Where Supply Chain Meets Trade Operations,” where industry leaders came together to discuss one of the most critical shifts facing automotive organizations today: the end of trade compliance as a back-office function and the emergence of integrated, strategic trade and supply chain decision-making.
The webinar, hosted by Alexandre LIRA and Gianluca Romano (TCEPro), featured insights from Amy Broglin (Michigan State University) and Carlos Borgonovo (Visteon), bringing together academic expertise and senior industry leadership to examine today’s rapidly evolving automotive trade landscape. Each speaker contributed perspectives grounded in both strategic analysis and real-world operational experience.
Throughout the discussion, the panel explored how persistent tariff volatility, geopolitical shocks, and enforcement-driven trade policy are reshaping supply chain design. Key themes included the need for deep supply chain mapping, the strategic importance of master data and traceability, the limitations of traditional sourcing models based solely on piece price, and the growing relevance of total landed cost ownership.
Amy Broglin:
“You can’t manage trade risk or design a resilient supply chain if you don’t truly understand where your supply comes from. Mapping and mastering your data is no longer optional, it’s foundational.”
The conversation also addressed the operational and cultural challenges of building agile, multi-regional, and resilient automotive supply networks in an environment of heightened regulatory scrutiny.
Carlos Borgonovo:
“Trade compliance, logistics, sourcing, and data governance are all part of the same value stream. When organizations connect these dots, they move from reacting to disruption to anticipating it.”
Core conclusion: organizations that continue to treat trade operations, compliance, and supply chain planning as separate silos will face increasing risk and competitive disadvantage. In today’s environment, trade strategy must be embedded upstream — into sourcing, network design, data governance, and executive decision-making.
Key takeaway: this is not a temporary disruption or a political-cycle issue. It represents a structural shift in how automotive companies must operate. Success going forward depends on integrated teams, shared data, proactive planning, and leadership capable of aligning compliance, cost, resilience, and customer strategy into a single operating model.