Educating, Connecting, and Empowering the International Trade Community

For Dave Allman, the Society for International Affairs (SIA) is where his career in international trade began. After transitioning from active military service into the aerospace and defense industry in 2009, Allman joined SIA with little background in international trade, looking for practical guidance and a community that understood the complexity of the regulatory landscape. Today, as President of the Society, he is committed to ensuring SIA continues to provide the education, mentorship, and professional connections that helped launch his own career.

Allman’s path to leadership began in 2010, when he started as A/V Chair on a Back to Basics conference committee. Over the following decade, he served in every volunteer committee position the organization had to offer, chairing multiple conferences along the way, a sustained record of grassroots service that earned him recognition as SIA's Volunteer of the Year in 2014 and ultimately led to his election to the Board of Directors in 2021. He went on to serve as Vice President before being elected President. His leadership is guided by a commitment to expanding educational opportunities, strengthening member engagement, and ensuring SIA evolves alongside an increasingly complex global trade landscape.

Among his proudest contributions is leading development of the License Exception ENC Handbook, which translated a complex area of export control law into a practical resource for the membership. He has also been a frequent conference speaker and, as a board member, has championed the redesign of SIA's website and efforts to ensure every member's investment delivers lasting value. He views his 2014 Volunteer of the Year honor as a reflection of the principle that has guided his service ever since: show up, contribute, and put the membership first.

Professionally, Allman is a Partner at K&L Gates LLP in Washington, D.C., where he helps companies move confidently through the maze of national security and international trade regulations that increasingly shape global business, including export controls, sanctions, foreign investment reviews, defense-sector mergers and acquisitions, and the government clearances and safeguards that let companies work on sensitive contracts. Drawing on 27 years of experience spanning military service, in-house compliance leadership, and private practice, he combines strategic business judgment with deep regulatory knowledge to help organizations move forward with confidence in a fast-changing regulatory environment.

Allman earned a Bachelor of Science in English from The Citadel and a Juris Doctor from American University Washington College of Law. He is licensed to practice law in the District of Columbia and is a member of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association.

For more than 25 years, Joshua L. "Josh" Richter has been committed to strengthening the Society for International Affairs (SIA) and the international trade community it serves. Since joining SIA in 2000, he has embraced the organization's mission of bringing together government and industry to share practical knowledge, foster professional relationships, and advance excellence in trade compliance. Having benefited from SIA throughout his career, Josh views his leadership as an opportunity to give back to the organization that has played such an important role in his own professional development.

Elected to the SIA Board of Directors in 2020, Josh currently serves as Vice President after previously serving as Secretary/Treasurer and as Planning & Education Lead. Throughout his tenure, he has helped guide the organization's strategic direction while remaining deeply engaged in the work that defines SIA's impact. He is especially proud of the Board's leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring that SIA remained financially strong, its educational resources stayed current, and members continued to benefit from meaningful engagement during a period of unprecedented disruption.

Josh’s contributions span nearly every aspect of the organization. A dedicated conference volunteer since the early 2000s, he has served in virtually every conference leadership role, from Hotel Chair, Speaker Chair, and Publications and Audio/Visual support to Conference Director and presenter. He has also played a significant role in the development of SIA's trusted publications, contributing to numerous handbook revisions, including the Disclosures Handbook, ITAR Exemptions Handbook, and EAR Exceptions Handbook. For Josh, these resources represent one of SIA's greatest strengths: providing practical, experience-driven guidance that helps trade professionals navigate an increasingly complex regulatory environment.

At the heart of his commitment to SIA is his belief that strong professional relationships strengthen the entire trade community. He views SIA as a unique forum where industry, government, suppliers, logistics providers, and other stakeholders come together to exchange ideas, solve shared challenges, and support U.S. national security and trade objectives. As he often says, "We're all in this together."

In his professional work, Josh serves as Senior Director of Trade Compliance at Leonardo DRS, where he provides operational leadership, governance, and oversight for the company's global trade compliance program, supporting business unit trade organizations across the enterprise. His decades of experience managing complex trade compliance programs bring practical perspective and strategic insight into SIA's educational initiatives, publications, and leadership.

In addition to his service with SIA, Josh is an active member and former Vice Chair of the National Council on International Trade Development (NCITD) and an active member and former Treasurer of GATT. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of New Mexico and a Master of Arts from the George Mason University School of Public Policy.

Julia Mason’s first “desk job” was with a start-up defense contractor, where she developed the purchasing department for research and development, low-rate prototypes, full-build projects, and government-furnished equipment. She also developed policies and procedures to obtain ISO certification and helped build the company’s business development group.

When her mentor announced that the company was entering the international market, it changed the trajectory of her career.

Over the years, Ms. Mason has developed extensive experience creating and delivering export training for executive leadership, function-specific personnel, and Empowered Officials. Her background in sourcing and business development at ICI, a subsidiary of Elbit Systems, gives her a strong understanding of these teams’ needs and enables her to serve as a strategic partner in building long-term relationships with internal and external customers and vendors.

Her time at Raytheon Technologies and ATK, later Orbital ATK and Northrop Grumman, enabled her to apply her knowledge of cradle-to-grave product and program development across a wide range of commodities and programs. This experience provides an advantage when assisting business partners in developing strategic licensing plans within applicable regulations.

Having analyzed more than 200 regulatory issues, she also brings significant insight to voluntary disclosures, the development of attainable and substantive corrective actions, and the successful execution of those actions.

Candace M.J. Goforth believes that effective trade compliance begins with education, collaboration, and a shared understanding between government and industry. Since joining the Society for International Affairs (SIA) in 2001 while serving at the U.S. Department of State's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), she has been committed to advancing that mission. Originally drawn to SIA as a way to better understand the challenges faced by industry, Candace quickly recognized the organization's unique ability to bridge perspectives, strengthen professional relationships, and improve the practice of export compliance for everyone involved.

As a member of the SIA Board of Directors since 2018, Candace has dedicated her leadership to expanding the organization's educational impact and equipping practitioners with the practical tools needed to navigate increasingly complex export control requirements. She currently serves as Planning & Education Lead, having previously served in both Planning & Education and as Secretary/Treasurer. Her guiding philosophy is that trade compliance is not intuitive, it must be taught, shared, and continually refined through dialogue and real-world experience. Through her leadership, she works to ensure SIA remains the premier forum where professionals at every stage of their careers can build knowledge, exchange ideas, and strengthen the international trade community.

Candace has helped shape many of SIA's signature educational programs and publications. She contributed to the development of the original Mergers, Acquisitions and Divestitures Handbook, revisions to the ITAR Exemptions Handbook, and numerous updates to other SIA publications, and she is currently leading work on the organization's Non-U.S. Compliance Handbook. She has also held leadership roles across SIA's conference portfolio, serving as Conference Director, Speaker Co-Chair, Board Liaison, and presenter, including at SIA's Australia Conference. Among the accomplishments she is most proud of are helping launch SIA's virtual conference program during the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring the community remained connected and engaged during a period of unprecedented upheaval, and advancing SIA's international educational initiatives to support global understanding of U.S. export control requirements.

Professionally, Candace is Managing Director of Goforth Trade Advisors LLC, where she provides strategic, practical guidance to U.S. and international organizations on export controls, sanctions, compliance program development, licensing, audits, jurisdiction and classification analyses, and training. Her experience in both government and private practice gives her a unique perspective that reinforces SIA's mission of fostering informed collaboration between regulators and industry.

In recognition of her longstanding contributions to the profession, Candace was named SIA's U.S. Government Volunteer of the Year and continues to serve as a member of the Defense Trade Advisory Group (DTAG). She earned a master's degree in security policy studies from The George Washington University, with concentrations in Transnational Security and Political Psychology.

Katherine Heubert is passionate about strengthening the international trade community by creating opportunities for professionals to learn, connect, and grow together. Since joining the Society for International Affairs (SIA) in 2016, she has become one of the organization's most active volunteers and leaders, driven by a belief that SIA's greatest value lies in bringing together government and industry to exchange practical knowledge, build lasting relationships, and prepare the next generation of trade professionals.

Elected to the SIA Board of Directors in 2022, Katherine serves on the Planning & Education Committee and has played a leadership role in many of the organization's flagship conferences. She served as Conference Director for the 2022 Spring Advanced Conference and has been Board Liaison or Back-up Liaison for numerous Basics and Advanced conferences, including the 2024 Winter B2B Conference, the 2024 Fall Advanced Conference, the 2025 Fall Advanced Conference, and the 2026 Spring Advanced Conference. She is also a frequent contributor to SIA's educational programming, starting as a Board panelist for the Agreements session at several SIA Basics conferences and now speaks on the EAR Licensing panel. Her contributions extend beyond conferences to SIA's publications, including contributing to the Compliance Insiders: Toolkit for Internal Compliance handbook.

In addition to these member-facing roles, Katherine is active behind the scenes. Most recently, she helped drive SIA's recent website redesign, an initiative that reflects her commitment to ensuring the organization remains accessible, relevant, and engaging for both current and future members. Katherine believes that investing in SIA's digital presence is an investment in its future, expanding access to educational resources, strengthening member engagement, and reinforcing the organization's role as a trusted leader in the international trade and compliance community. For her, SIA has always been more than a professional association; it is a community where practitioners build expertise, exchange ideas, and develop relationships that last throughout their careers.

Katherine brings that same collaborative and practical approach to her role as Senior Global Trade Counsel at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), where she advises the company's Global Trade organization on complex legal and compliance matters involving U.S. and international export controls, sanctions, and other cross-border regulatory requirements. Prior to HPE, Katherine was in private practice and has held positions in both industry and government, all focused on export control and sanctions compliance. Her experience navigating evolving global trade regulations enables her to contribute practical, real-world perspectives to SIA's educational programs and strategic initiatives.

Katherine is admitted to practice law in Washington, D.C., and Maryland. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Louisiana State University, a Juris Doctor from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, and a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from Georgetown University Law Center.

Samantha Johnson is a trade compliance leader with more than 15 years of experience across the aerospace, automotive, and technology sectors. As Director of Global Trade Compliance at L3Harris, she specializes in designing practical, risk-based compliance frameworks that support innovation while meeting regulatory requirements.

Her career includes leadership roles with organizations such as JPL/Caltech, Airbus U.S. Space & Defense, and ispace technologies U.S., in addition to earlier positions with Northrop Grumman, RTX (formerly Raytheon Company), and Navistar Defense.

Ms. Johnson holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Hawaii Pacific University.

Jennifer J. Martin serves as Vice President, Senior Assistant General Counsel, Global Trade at Leidos. In this capacity, she leads the company’s export controls, sanctions, customs, and anti-boycott functions across domestic and international operations.

Prior to joining Leidos in 2024, Ms. Martin held senior global trade positions with Raytheon, General Electric, and Metrea. In these roles, she has worked in all aspects of Global Trade Legal, Compliance, and Licensing to provide strategic, pragmatic guidance to entities in the U.S. and in non-U.S. jurisdictions.

Since joining the Society for International Affairs (SIA) in 2016, Ms. Martin has been an active contributor to the organization's mission of strengthening the international trade and compliance community through collaboration between government and industry. Elected to the SIA Board of Directors in 2023, she serves on the Planning & Education Committee and the Website Committee and has led or supported several key initiatives, including SIA's work on AUKUS and the Exceptions Handbook. Ms. Martin is passionate about fostering meaningful dialogue among trade professionals and believes that SIA plays a vital role in helping practitioners navigate the increasingly complex intersection of trade, compliance, and national security. Through her board service, she is committed to expanding SIA's impact as a trusted forum for professional development, practical education, and cross-sector engagement.

Beyond her service to SIA, Martin serves on the Board of Directors of the National Council on International Trade Development. She earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri and her bachelor's degree from Bradley University.

Tamara Johnson is Senior Manager, International Trade Compliance at Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems in Orlando, Florida. She brings more than 30 years of experience in regulatory compliance, legal affairs, ethics, and international trade compliance.

As an Empowered Official and compliance manager, she has extensive experience conducting internal audits, investigating regulatory issues, preparing voluntary disclosures, developing licensing strategies, negotiating technical assistance agreements, and delivering export compliance training.

Prior to joining the International Trade Compliance organization, Ms. Johnson served as an Ethics Officer and Paralegal at Lockheed Martin. Earlier in her career, she worked as a paralegal for Siemens and in private legal practice.

She holds a bachelor's degree in Legal Studies from the University of Central Florida, speaks conversational Dutch, and received both the 2015 Lockheed Martin International Trade Compliance Excellence Award and the 2020 SIA Joyce Poetzl Memorial Volunteer of the Year Award.

Matthew (Matt) Binder is committed to advancing the Society for International Affairs' mission of connecting the international trade community through education, collaboration, and volunteer leadership. Since joining SIA in 2019, he has become an active leader within the organization, driven by a passion for strengthening the partnerships between government and industry that are essential to effective global trade compliance.

Elected to the SIA Board of Directors in 2026, Matt serves on the Planning & Education Committee, where he helps shape educational programming that equips trade professionals with timely, practical insights into the evolving regulatory landscape. Throughout his service, he has held numerous leadership roles supporting SIA conferences, including Speaker Chair, Conference Director, and Board Liaison. He is especially proud of helping develop conference agendas that bring together diverse perspectives and provide meaningful value to the international trade community.

Matt's volunteer leadership is grounded in extensive professional experience in export controls and sanctions. As Manager, Global Trade Licensing & Sanctions at BAE Systems, Inc., he serves as the company's primary liaison with U.S. government stakeholders to advance licensing priorities. He manages a broad portfolio of export licenses and agreements, ensuring compliance with U.S. export control regulations while supporting the company's global business objectives.

Matt earned a Bachelor of Science in International Business from the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland.