Global VP Trade Lane Strategy & Development

The role will lead the development and execution of a globally aligned Trade Lane strategy that connects origin and destination markets, Commercial, Operations, Procurement, Product and regional leadership behind common growth priorities. The VP will establish the strategic priorities, governance, performance framework and operating model required to translate DP World’s global network strength into sustainable volume growth, gross profit and improved network economics.

The VP will operate across DP World’s global/regional matrix, providing global leadership of the Trade Lane community and creating the mechanisms through which regions jointly develop and execute origin-destination business plans. The role will ensure clear accountability for targets, pipeline, conversion, capacity, investment and performance while providing senior management with transparent visibility of progress and corrective actions.

This role acts as a global integrator between Commercial and Operations, ensuring that customer demand, sales priorities, procurement strategy, capacity commitments and operational capabilities are aligned around the priority Trade 

Key Accountabilities:

• Global Trade Lane Strategy & Network Growth
• Own and continuously evolve the global Freight Forwarding Trade Lane strategy, translating DP World logistics ambitions into clearly prioritised origin-destination growth corridors.
• Define the methodology and criteria for identifying priority Trade Lanes, ensuring resources, commercial effort, procurement capacity and investment are concentrated where DP World can create sustainable competitive advantage.
• Establish volume, gross profit, pipeline and conversion ambitions for priority Trade Lanes in collaboration with Regions, Commercial, Finance, Procurement and Product.
• Drive cross-regional growth by treating Trade Lanes as joint business plans between origin and destination regions, creating mutual accountability for generating export and import opportunities. This joint-business-plan principle is explicitly embedded in the 2027 strategy.
• Identify structural gaps and opportunities across the network and mobilise regional and functional leadership to address them
• Commercial Growth & Go-to-Market
• Establish the global framework for Trade Lane go-to-market plans, ensuring priority lanes have clear customer, vertical, product, pipeline, pricing, capacity and competitive strategies.
• Drive alignment with Global and Regional Commercial organisations on must-win customers, target verticals, pipeline generation and conversion priorities.
• Ensure Trade Lane strategies are translated into executable sales campaigns and customer engagement plans at regional and country level.
• Champion proactive lead generation and cross-regional opportunity sharing, leveraging the full DP World network to generate business at both origin and destination.
• Ensure commercial teams are equipped with clear lane propositions, market intelligence, competitive positioning and relevant sales collateral.
• Intervene in strategically significant opportunities and tenders where global alignment, investment or executive sponsorship is required.
• Network, Product & Procurement Alignment
• Act as the executive bridge between Commercial, Operations, Procurement and Product, ensuring Trade Lane growth plans are aligned with available capacity, service requirements and operational capabilities
• Translate expected Trade Lane demand into forward-looking capacity and procurement requirements.
• Translate Trade Lane strategy and demand forecasts into capacity and sourcing requirements, and partner with Procurement to ensure carrier and capacity strategies support agreed Trade Lane priorities
• Define Trade Lane customer and market requirements for differentiated Air and Ocean propositions and partner with Product to ensure these requirements are reflected in product development
• Ensure appropriate balance between commercial opportunity, capacity utilisation, service quality, margin and carrier commitments.
• Identify and escalate systemic cross-regional issues that constrain Trade Lane growth or network performance, and coordinate cross-functional actions to address them.
• Performance Management & Business Accountability
• Establish and own the global Trade Lane performance management framework, providing transparent and actionable visibility from country and region through to global leadership.
• Own the global Trade Lane KPI framework and dashboard, ensuring consistent measurement and accountability across regions.
• Lead monthly, quarterly and annual performance reviews of priority Trade Lanes, identifying deviations from plan and ensuring corrective actions are assigned and executed.
• Drive performance against metrics including volume, GP, pipeline, conversion, customer acquisition, retention/churn, RFQ performance, growth initiatives and share of Freight Forwarding volume moving through priority lanes.
• Challenge Regions on underperformance and facilitate corrective interventions involving Commercial, Operations, Procurement or investment as required.
• Build a culture of fact-based performance management and shared accountability across the Trade Lane community.
• Target Setting, Planning & Governance
• Own the global Trade Lane target-setting and governance process and ensure alignment between Trade Lane ambitions, regional plans and the annual budget.
• Establish governance for controlled and uncontrolled Trade Lane volumes and ensure origin and destination targets are mutually understood and agreed.
• Partner with Finance and Commercial leadership to incorporate Trade Lane targets into annual and longer-term planning.
• Govern the global Trade Lane target library and associated approval hierarchy, version control, audit history and performance visibility.
• Develop the capability over time to connect volume targets with revenues, resources, productivity and operational requirements.
• Growth Investment & Strategic Initiatives
• Establish clear criteria for identifying, evaluating and prioritising investments required to accelerate strategic Trade Lanes.
• Govern Trade Lane proposals for Growth Fund and other strategic investment mechanisms.
• Evaluate business cases based on strategic relevance, expected volume and GP impact, customer potential, capacity requirements and return.
• Track the effectiveness of approved investments and ensure lessons are incorporated into subsequent investment decisions.
• Proactively identify where targeted intervention can unlock structurally constrained or strategically important lanes.
• Global Trade Lane Community Leadership
• Lead the global Trade Lane Management community and embed a consistent operating model across regions.
• Define roles, responsibilities, decision rights, KPIs, processes and minimum organisational requirements for Trade Lane Management globally.
• Build a high-performing global community that shares market intelligence, commercial opportunities, best practices and lessons learned across organisational boundaries.
• Establish the required monthly, quarterly and annual management cadence and ensure decisions and actions translate into execution.
• Partner with Regional leadership to ensure appropriate Trade Lane Management capability and resourcing against priority lanes.
• Develop the Trade Lane Management talent pipeline, capabilities and succession agenda globally

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Logistics, Supply Chain, Business, Economics or related discipline; postgraduate/MBA qualification advantageous.
• 15+ years of progressively senior leadership experience in international Freight Forwarding, logistics or a closely related global network business.
• Significant leadership experience in Trade Lane Management, Commercial, Product, Freight Forwarding or network management, ideally across multiple geographies.
• Deep knowledge of international Air and Ocean Freight, including commercial models, carrier procurement, pricing, capacity management and operational dynamics.
• Demonstrated experience translating strategy into measurable commercial growth across a complex global or regional network.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen with experience managing volume, revenue/GP, pipeline, conversion and investment decisions.
• Proven ability to lead and influence senior stakeholders across a global matrix organisation, including situations where accountability extends beyond direct reporting lines.
• Experience establishing governance, performance management and target-setting frameworks across multiple countries or regions.
• Strong understanding of customer segmentation, vertical strategies, and strategic account development.
• Ability to interpret complex market and performance data and convert insights into decisive commercial and operational action.
• Executive-level communication, negotiation and influencing capability.
• Strong organisational leadership capability with demonstrated experience building communities, capabilities and high-performing teams across cultures.
• Comfortable operating in an evolving business environment requiring both strategic thinking and hands-on intervention to remove execution barriers.
• International mobility and willingness to travel as required