Randa El-Daouk

I am an authorised signatory of the ABCC and my main role is to issue, certify and legalise commercial documents belonging to UK companies who are exporting to or doing business with the Arab world. I completed my certification training with the British Chambers of Commerce. My daily tasks involve:

• Creating and printing Arab-British certificates of origin
• Certifying these certificates along with commercial invoices and other commercial documents with a total of approximately 100 documents per day
• Ensuring they are legally compliant with the regulations of the UK and of the Arab country they are destined for
• Preparing and sending documents to solicitors, notary public offices, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and Arab embassies for certification and legalisation
• Processing electronic export documentation on the TradeCert/essCERT and eCERT platforms
• Maintaining records and updating documents’ status on a logistics platform powered by Hashmove
• Invoicing clients and collecting payments
• Communicating with VIP clients face-to-face, on the phone and by email

I also assist the events team in creating and running events aimed at promoting trade and investment in the Arab world. Our events take place both inhouse and externally, and they range from country-specific events to industry-wide conferences. My tasks involve:

• Helping to plan events based on the 5 Ps – Product, People, Place, Promotion and Price
• Creating digital campaigns on a CRM platform, namely Glue Up, to send to our members and wider network
• Marketing the events on the ABCC website and social media platforms
• Meeting and greeting Arab and British VIP guests including ministers, ambassadors, diplomats and senior government & business official

I am also responsible for running online international trade training courses where participants are taught, by a professional trainer, how to import and export from the UK and the rules and regulations by which they must abide. My tasks involve:

• Ensuring the courses are relevant to the current market and general business climate
• Creating digital campaigns on Glue Up to send to our members and wider network
• Marketing the courses on the ABCC website and social media platforms
• Setting up and supervising the courses on Zoom

I was the Personal Assistant to the CEO & Secretary General. My daily tasks involved:

• Professionally greeting clients and delivering friendly, knowledgeable assistance
• Scheduling and facilitating internal and external meetings
• Organising personal and professional calendars and supplying timely reminders of upcoming meetings and events
• Managing approximately 30 incoming calls and emails per day from customers
• Checking and opening mail, and promptly responding to correspondence, bills and invoices
• Taking detailed, accurate meeting minutes, collating and distributing to relevant staff for swift action
• Coordinating flight, accommodation and travel arrangements, whilst maintaining strict compliance with budgets and schedules
• Applying best business practices and etiquette to comply with guidelines and procedures

My role was to assist the Relationship Managers in their day-to-day work and to ensure all client accounts were compliant with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Client (KYC) regulations. My tasks involved:

• Assisting relationship managers in managing their portfolios and in processing deposits, withdrawals and payments for customers daily
• Checking client accounts to ensure necessary details and documents were held on file to ensure AML and KYC compliance
• Assisting customers with setting up or closing accounts, completing loan applications and signing up for new services
• Creating a confidential record and filing system to facilitate fast retrieval of information
• Directing customers to necessary personnel for specific questions or advanced service requests
• Maintaining a strict level of confidentiality to protect the bank's business interests