1. Linda Ayala
12701 W. Hendryx Ct.
Wichita, Kansas 67235
316-573-8925
ayalalinda36@gmail.com
PROFILE
Business minded professional with fifteen years international business experience in the areas of sales,
logistics, import, and export, process improvements. Experienced in leading large and multifunctional
groups in trainings and process improve initiatives to drive value creation and drive employee
development.
EXPERIENCE
FREIGHT FORWARDING SUPERVISOR APRIL 2012-
WICHITA, KS – INVISTA S.AR.L
• Exporting full containerized ocean freight from the US by securing bookings with ocean carrier and
NVOCC’s (non-vessel operating common carrier) and working with load site to execute shipments.
Selecting best value carrier to meet customers estimated time of arrival.
• Utilize GT Nexus to make bookings and preparing Shipping instructions with the lowest cost carriers
while providing best service to the business.
• Resolving GT Nexus and SAP integration issues and coordinating with Information technology
support teams to solve mapping issues or create new mapping process to insure booking and
Shipping instructions are automated.
• Correct XML messages between SAP Transportation Module to GT Nexus interfaces for on-time
booking and shipping instruction processing.
• Provide training for bookings, AES, Shipping instructions and documentation presentation along
with Letter of Credit and Direct collection training to current staff and new staff along with
communicating changes to these processes to Supply Chain, Customer Service and load site teams.
Skilled in training large global teams.
• Maintain appropriate trainings in HAZMAT requirements; 49 CFR, IMDG and IATA.
• Maintain up to date knowledge for export requirements for the United States and import
requirements globally.
• SAP Transportation management user and trainer interface knowledge with GT Nexus
• SAP Global Trade Service user and trainer- interface knowledge with AES and Shipper letter of
instruction with third party groups.
• Supervising six full time employees and four contract employees.
• Exporting 20k TEU per year.
• Import /Export trucking processing.
• International Commerce experience
YMCA GROUP EX INSTRUCTOR OCT 2011-
Greater Wichita YMCA- Northwest
• Cycle, Water, PiYo, Yoga, Bootcamp instructor to motivate and engage members through a variety
of programs to promote a healthy lifestyle, build stronger families and develop a healthy mind,
body and spirit for all of our member regardless of their ability to pay.
• Assist the GROUP EX team with fund raising events.
• CPR Adult/ child, AED, FIRST AID, O2 CERTIFIED.
• 200 HOUR YOGA CERTIFIED
2. RETAIL PRODUCT MANAGER APRIL 2011- DEC 2011
Wichita, KS- Retail Cargill
• Maintain Freezer Variance less than 10%
• Monitor and Implement production decisions on Primal products. Working closely with Production
teams to insure quality, mitigate production issues and create new products for retail customers.
• Product line packaging improvements. Consolidate current packaging SKU’s, and reducing obsolete
packaging.
• Customer Profitability continuing to facilitate the goal of 1 new charter per month.
• Claims Reduction, collaborating with sales and plant teams to reduce the number of claims per
month
• Develop action plans to prevent claims issues. Best Practice initiatives by Production Plant location.
Work with plant teams to negotiate export compliance issues from documentation to quality
specification issues, insure the most cost effective result.
• Contributed $5 million dollars back to Cargill’s Protein Business unit through Customer Profitability
process in which current business processes where challenged to find cost savings. Team leader for
a small team that overhauled our pallet handling process that returned approximately $2.5 million
dollars of the $5 million dollar goal for the first six months of the project.
International Product Manager
Wichita, KS- International Cargill
2006- 2011
• Finished last three years above P&L Budget expectations for Special Export Room
operation.
• Product Manager for finished raw material products from Ottumwa and Beardstown
production facilities, responsible for sales and pricing to Key Export Markets: Hong Kong,
ASEAN, Taiwan, Korea, Japan to include US Domestic, Central America and Mexico.
• Increased the value of boxed finished product for FY 2010-2011 to $3.91/ lbs above last
year’s goal of $3.50/lbs.
• Monitor market analysis to gauge trends, competitors in the market, and promote new
opportunities for Special Export Room and Finished Boxed products for Export markets.
• Special Export Room Frozen- drop credit production was break even this year. Met market
expectations.
• Facilitated in new product development for both our production facilities to net revenue of
$400,000 USD at our Ottumwa Facility for FY 2008-2009. Initiated the sales of Good
Nature Premium program to the Chinese market. Facilitated in the sales of full container
load to high end retailers and Western style food service chains in Shanghai and Beijing,
Peoples Republic of China.
• Writing product specs and collaborating with production teams, R&D departments to
implement new products. General pork plant knowledge, performed customer tours for
Japanese, Korean, Greater China customers.
• Collaborating with Claims and Credit departments to keep customer accounts current and
aid in helping Foreign Sales offices with specific claims issues by region and market.
Worked with the Russian sales office and International Beef/ Cargill Pork team to mitigate
losses during the Financial Crisis 2008.
• Skilled in writing and performing employee reviews and setting Key Responsibility Areas
for a direct report and Key Responsibility Area goals for Foreign Sales Offices in markets
such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, China. Also have been instrumental in the further
development and International training of the last two employees to the International sales
group.
• Experience working with Trade groups such as USMEF (United States Meat Export
Federation), NPPC (National Pork Producers Council), and U.S.D.A., (United States
Department of Agriculture) to help facilitate and mitigate customs clearance and trade
barrier issues in key export markets for Protein business. Experienced in export
documentation requirements by country of export. Experienced in navigating through
government regulations to insure on time vessel shipments.
• Created the International business process and procedure handbook for Cargill
International Sales department. The handbook outlines processes and procedures by market
a How to guide on; doing business with foreign sales offices and international customers
and handling issues regarding, logistics, claims, credit, and sales reports.
3. Senior Logistics Manager- International 2003-2006
Wichita, KS- International
• Responsible for on-time Chilled Shipments to our Key export markets for Japan and
Korea. Managed inland freight shipments from producing plants to West coast locations,
experience includes rail, truck and air shipments.
• Coordinated with Plant production teams to insure the correct product mix was produced
efficiently by scheduling the Special Export Room for production on a daily basis.
• Responsible to minimize and or reduce claim issues from our Japanese and Korean chilled
Pork Business. Experience managing country requirements relating to documentation and
proper product labeling, working with vessel freight companies for the best cost and route
for our cargo destined for foreign ports.
• Bridge positive working relationships with Domestic Scheduling and Production plant
facilities and third party freezer locations, to include foreign sales offices and their
personnel in the effort to attain export product.
• XLGO order entry and management for chilled international pork orders. Processing
approximately 40 to 50 chilled containers for Japan and Korea per week and maintain
order fill accuracy.
Documentation Clerk 2001-2003
Wichita, KS- International
• Responsible for the on time billing of customer accounts and preparing customer export
presentations, to include handling Letters of Credit and managing the credit terms per
customer to insure proper billing and customs clearance. Experienced in auditing Export
Documentation for Russia, Japan, Hong Kong and China for both beef and pork products.
To include auditing USDA export documents and auditing Ocean Bills of Lading to ease
custom clearance processes for our customers.
• Closely monitor custom clearance issues by market, monitor changing regulations for
export markets and work closely with our foreign sales office to offer a quick solution for
customs clearance.
• Coordinate with Logistics, Credit, Freezer accounting and pork production plants, and
freezer teams to issue correct documents and invoices for product shipping to our key
export markets.
EDUCATION
Baker University 2004-2006
• Masters of Business Administration.
University of Texas at San Antonio 1994-1999
• B.A. Liberal Arts- Political Science
SKILLS AND INTERESTS
High multitasking abilities and organizational skills, strong communication and presentation skills, and
team oriented. Ability to read, write and speak Spanish, basic conversational knowledge of the Russian
language. Strong skills in XLGO- order management, PRP Mariner Specification System, Microsoft Office
Word, Outlook, Excel, and Power Point. Skills include 49 CFR and IMDG, IATA (HAZMAT certified)
exporting Hazardous Cargo, SAP, GT Nexus, KRONOS, Supervisor skills for non-exempt employees,
FMLA regulations.