Assistant Manager, Customs Clearance Nestle

The role is responsible for managing end-to-end customs clearance, shipment coordination, documentation control, broker management, authority follow-up, warehouse coordination, and operational reporting to ensure smooth import/export clearance, timely, goods receipt, compliance with regulatory requirements, and continuous improvement of shipment lead time and service performance.

Key Responsibilities

1. Shipment Management & Daily Operations

• Monitor and extract new shipments from internal platforms such as DBS, M&M, and in-transit email updates on a daily basis.
• Segregate shipments among clearing brokers based on shipment category, business needs, destination, and urgency.
• Assign shipment categories and share required shipment details with the relevant clearing agents.
• Coordinate new shipment handover to brokers and ensure required documentation is received and actioned on time.
• Manage virtual destination requests in coordination with the DSP team and communicate container destination details to clearing agents.
• Send pre-arrival notifications to warehouse teams across all DCs to ensure readiness for inbound shipments.
• Track shipment arrival status with warehouse teams and brokers to ensure shipments are received, arrived, and goods-receipted correctly.
• Check and share air and road shipment emails, including required shipping documents such as packing lists and sea waybills when needed.
• Perform daily checks through FASAH reports to confirm shipment clearance status and readiness for sale.
• Follow up with warehouse teams on shipments under Q-block status and review related reports such as Iqbal Report.

2. SFDA, Quality & Compliance Coordination

• Verify SFDA shipment status to determine whether items are released, under review, or require further action.
• Ensure warehouse teams receive items under Q-block status when SFDA release is still pending.
• Coordinate with SFDA inspectors and provide warehouse location details for sample collection when required.
• Follow up on lab test payments by ensuring brokers share proof of payment for required laboratory tests.
• Manage shipment-related quality issues such as rusted or damaged containers by coordinating with shipping lines, quality teams, IMS, and brokers.
• Liaise directly with relevant authorities to resolve clearance issues, regulatory requirements, and compliance matters.
• Cross-check with IMS and warehouse teams on quality-related receiving issues, including batch discrepancies, missing items, and excess quantities.
• Support SALAM shipments within the assigned clearance scope.

3. Documentation, Tracking & Reporting

• Update sea shipment tracker files and PO sheets with new shipment details.
• Maintain and update the daily SFDA tracking sheet with new shipments and status updates.
• Review daily DOR operation sheets per broker to track shipment progress and pending actions.
• Update container tracking sheets based on cleared shipments and actual operational status.
• Maintain virtual destination tracking sheets based on DSP feedback.
• Update transportation tracking files shared with brokers and follow up on broker actions.
• Update the delivery plan report with new shipments and refresh the daily delivery plan schedule.
• Conduct daily health checks on in-yard container reports to maintain clean records and support zero in-yard container targets.
• Prepare and update critical shipment reports for the DSP team.
• Send freight invoices to brokers and support documentation completion.
• Prepare COR slides and operational reports for internal review.

4. Communication & Stakeholder Coordination

• Follow up with IMS teams regarding missing documents required for customs clearance.
• Ensure brokers receive the required documents in advance to complete virtual requests and clearance activities on time.
• Coordinate with Tax, RSA, Finance, Warehouse, IMS, DSP, Quality, and broker teams to resolve operational blockers.
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders to supervise daily clearance tasks and ensure smooth execution.
• Maintain regular communication with clearing agents to monitor shipment status, pending documents, delivery plans, and operational performance.

5. Broker & Performance Management

• Monitor clearing agent delivery and operational performance on a daily basis.
• Lead daily DOR meetings with clearing agents to review shipment status, pending actions, and operational issues.
• Participate in OPC calls to review missing documents, shipment KPIs, and clearance performance.
• Conduct monthly face-to-face broker performance review meetings.
• Track and review lead time KPIs, demurrage, detention, and clearance-related delays.
• Support performance improvement initiatives with brokers to reduce clearance lead time and avoid unnecessary cost.

6. Export & Cross-OPC Coordination

• Coordinate export shipments from Saudi warehouses to other OPCs.
• Follow up on export documentation, shipment readiness, and broker support requirements.
• Support cross-market shipment coordination by ensuring documents, clearance requirements, and timelines are aligned.

7. Financial Coordination & Payment Follow-up

• Coordinate with the finance team to close open purchase orders and resolve GR/IR pending items.
• Raise payment tickets and follow the required payment workflow, including sign-off, scanning, upload to NBS, SharePoint updates, tracker updates, email follow-up, and closure monitoring.
• Follow up on broker-related payments, freight invoices, lab test payments, and other clearance-related financial requirements.