In today’s unpredictable trade environment, where tariff policies and enforcement priorities change overnight, businesses face mounting pressure to keep supply chains resilient and compliant. AGG’s Global Trade & Sanctions team, led by practice chair Allison Raley, helps businesses face this uncertainty head on with strategies to mitigate risk and seize opportunities for growth and efficiency.
From tariff advisement and sanctions compliance to supply chain optimization and cross-border investment reviews, AGG brings both regulatory insight and business perspective tailored to the individual needs of each client. In the following Q&A, Allison shares her perspective on the challenges companies face, the value of proactive compliance, and the practical steps businesses can take today to turn trade regulation into a competitive advantage.
What are the biggest trade and compliance challenges businesses are facing right now, and how does AGG’s Global Trade & Sanctions team help clients stay ahead of them?
The most pressing challenge for businesses today is the volatility of the tariff and trade landscape, where sudden policy developments can alter costs and disrupt sourcing overnight. Many companies discover too late that their supply chains, unchanged for years, leave them exposed from both financial and regulatory enforcement standpoints. At AGG, we work side by side with clients to conduct supply chain optimization reviews, align product classifications with current rules, and highlight alternative sourcing strategies that reduce risk. By doing so, our clients stay ahead of the change and are equipped with the knowledge and flexibility to pivot quickly, regardless of next change in trade policy.
How do you work with businesses to turn complex regulations, such as tariffs, sanctions, and export controls, into opportunities rather than roadblocks?
Regulation can feel like a barrier, but it often creates new strategic openings. For example, we help businesses optimize supply chains to leverage reduced duty rates, secure tariff reductions through post-summary corrections or duty drawback, and mitigate sanctions exposure by establishing robust screening and licensing frameworks. What appears restrictive becomes a competitive edge. Stronger compliance earns trust from regulators, investors, and trading partners alike.
“Understanding the sourcing of each element within a product allows companies to identify safer suppliers and react more quickly to disruption.”
Can you share an example of how the team has helped a client reduce risk or cost in their supply chain through proactive compliance strategies?
We recently advised a life sciences client that had long been classifying a key product under an HTS code carrying significant duties. Through a detailed review of the product’s specifications and sourcing, our team identified that the item in fact qualified for an exemption under a different, properly applicable HTS provision. By preparing the supporting analysis and guiding the client through the Customs ruling process, we not only eliminated millions in unnecessary tariff exposure but also reduced the risk of enforcement action tied to misclassification. This proactive supply chain compliance strategy safeguarded the client financially while creating a stronger foundation for long-term trade planning.
What should companies be doing today to prepare for potential changes in U.S. trade policy and enforcement priorities?
Companies should begin with comprehensive supply chain and country-of-origin reviews, ensuring that product classifications and sourcing strategies can withstand shifting tariff schedules or enforcement priorities. They should also strengthen record retention systems so that documentation is audit-ready, supporting post-summary corrections and potential tariff clawbacks when opportunities for duty recovery arise. Just as importantly, understanding the sourcing of each element within a product allows companies to identify safer suppliers and react more quickly to disruption. It is extremely common for clients to come to us having not conducted a supply chain optimization in a decade simply because of all the other time constraints they face — leaving them exposed to regulatory enforcement penalties and significant financial loss through an unoptimized strategy.
How does the team partner with businesses to manage compliance and support their long-term business goals?
We embed ourselves as strategic advisors rather than distant auditors, walking businesses through the full arc of their growth. Our team includes former business executives who understand the constraints and goals that shape commercial decisions, and former regulators who know how enforcement authorities think when they examine a company’s practices. This dual vantage point allows us to design compliance frameworks that not only satisfy regulatory standards but also advance expansion, cross-border investment, and new product launches. In this partnership, compliance ceases to be a defensive burden and becomes a discipline of trust and resilience — a strategy that enables sustainable global growth.
What are the top three practical steps businesses can take right now to strengthen their trade compliance and reduce risk exposure?
The first step is to look with clear eyes at the whole supply chain, mapping every supplier, intermediary, and market. Such transparency does more than reveal tariff exposure; it uncovers the weak places where disruption threatens the integrity of trade. The second step is to discern the true country of origin for each product, not only to meet the letter of U.S. and foreign law but to discover whether new sourcing paths might open freedom from unnecessary cost or risk. The third step is to examine the horizon of treaties and preferential duty programs — USMCA, GSP, and others — where opportunities for reduction and resilience lie hidden in plain sight. In these steps, companies not only guard against risk but also transform compliance into a strategy that strengthens their position in the market and secures a competitive advantage.
