Moving on – thoughts on the transition from a NGO leadership role to the life beyond

It is a year since I stood down as CEO from the UK forestry NGO, Small Woods Association, and now feels a good time to look at the process of moving on and what I have learnt from it.  In writing this, I hope my experience can be useful to others considering new directions in their working lives; and particularly those thinking about the pros and cons of altering their course. 

Choosing the right time to go is not a luxury open to everyone, however I was fortunate to have the environment and opportunity to do so.  Part of that good fortune was having a good relationship with my business manager, who had detected that I wasn’t quite firing on all cylinders and was honest (and brave) enough to say so.  It was an intervention that probably told me what I already knew deep down; her courage in questioning whether I was still “on it” edged me down the road.

For me, deciding to move on was a judgement about whether I still had the energy and ideas to continue taking the organisation forward, and I concluded that I did not.  Having communicated the decision to go, giving the board six months’ notice, the good and supportive board from which the charity benefits switched into recruitment mode and made a good appointment in time for a decent handover.  The final piece in the decision-making jigsaw was the important role played by the “home team,” enabling me to discuss everything outside the work environment.  This is particularly important as those you are closest to are going to experience the biggest impacts of any change.

Departure … and arrival

So, to the process of departure … and arrival.  Do not expect this to be an automatic, or immediate process – and given the nature of what you are going through, it is perhaps better if it is not.  In my case, I would say that the process of the last 12+ months has been essential in moving from one “steady state” to another, through a state of flux.

Everyone will navigate this particular maze in their own particular way.  I would advise try not to rush it, or to overthink it.  The central virtue of stepping away from a big role is that you now have space and time.  Having spent eight years (in my case) in a remorseless grind of budgets, projects, board meetings, accounts, AGMs and all the attendant membership, staffing and stakeholder issues; I was able to embrace the difference; you can take time to smell the roses, it is important that you do so.  The structure of the old job is gone, there is no need to put another in its place straight away.  Give yourself the time and space to allow the dust to settle and to look at yourself and your future in a different light.

For me, it has been helpful to go through a complete year without any expectation of setting a new course straight away.  This has allowed me to see through the full cycle of the four seasons in the new context and the clarity I now have is a result of the totality of that process.  Enabling yourself to see how things look in all the areas of your new life can sometimes require that amount of time.  This is something I learnt from working with woodlands, where advice to new woodland owners (who are often dead keen to getting to grips with their new charge, is to stop, stand back and understand this unique place for which you are now responsible; preferably for a full year.  I found the same logic can be applied to yourself.

Others might take a more systematic approach than I did, and there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, when I made an earlier career change, that is exactly what I did, principally because I just didn’t have the time for contemplation that I have had this time. In that case, I wrote an “options paper” for my wife and I to look at the pros and cons of the main options I had, which helped us come to a firm agreement of the way forward. This time, I had the time and space to let things take their own course and I feel the better for it.

A critical role was played by conversations with others who were at a similar stage in their lives (you know who you are!). The experiences of others on the same path are completely invaluable, I only hope they were as useful to my counterparts! Nobody’s path is identical to your own, but there is almost always something you can take from another’s experience.  So reach out to others, they are very likely to find it just as beneficial.

During the course of the past year, I have also been approached to do things and have generally said “no.”  Mostly, that was based on a gut feeling of whether something felt right or not.  However, I am even more certain now that those were the right choices and that continuing to have “head space” was the right choice.  Whether I would have felt as ready for the next challenge as I do now, had I jumped at those opportunities, I doubt.  It is important to not simply move to fill the void.  To do so probably wouldn’t be helping yourself and probably wouldn’t help the organisation concerned.

One thing that made that choice easier was that I was also fortunate enough to have a couple of interesting projects which took part of my attention over the past year and enabled me to move on professionally.  Through these, I met new colleagues and became reacquainted with former ones.  These were not, however, my main focus last year. Two other projects took priority: defining my next chapter and my health.

The most important “project” was, in fact, my health.  At the end of 2023, I was exhausted and I felt unwell.  Across 2024, I spent a lot of time shuttling between clinics and testing suites to get to the bottom of what was going on.  It was several things happening at once, but with the exception of a form of skin cancer, which was caught thankfully early and knocked back with a course of chemotherapy, most other things were really the result of poor diet and lifestyle.  I have spent a lot of time and effort addressing these issues and most of the negative health and wellbeing trends are now heading in the right direction.  This all takes time and that’s why it benefits from being seen as a project in itself, so that you prioritise it sufficiently. 

This is a classic case of “fixing your own oxygen mask” – if you do not look after yourself, you cannot possibly be relied upon to help others. Also, any plans you might have for your next chapter will not amount to a hill of beans if you don’t have the capability to accomplish them.  Having said all of that, our health isn’t something we can rely upon. All we can do is make the best of what we have.  Again, I have been fortunate.

So, to the process of working out how to move forward.  I knew I wanted to stay active professionally, but having had a 40-year career in a wide variety of roles and fields, what was my field?  Was it leadership or governance, based on my last role; was it rural and environmental resources, based on the focus of the majority of the roles I have fulfilled; was it evaluation, the main focus of my private sector work? In truth, all these remain cards I can play, however, I have decided to focus on those things where I can focus my knowledge and experience to influence positive change.  I have long held an ambition to take on a more academic role and, having discussed this with current academics, I (and crucially they) can see a way to employ my skills.  I don’t want a job, but I do want to be useful and so some sort of research associateship is now in the wind, which I am really looking forward to as it gives me the freedom to start thinking about where all this experience has brought me.  It also gives me access to bright people who will challenge my crazier thoughts. 

Change of status and locus

Moving on is a bittersweet experience, however well balanced you are. It is likely that one of the more bitter tastes you experience and something that is easily underestimated is around status and locus.  Senior executives are used to simply taking anything that is thrown at us; and many will seek to maintain publicly that this change in status is something else that you can take with the same nonchalance.  It is important, however, to be really honest, first of all with yourself.  If you are feeling the impact of this change in status, give yourself space to have these feelings; only then can you deal with them.  

One transition I have made organically during the year is to stop introducing myself as a “former CEO.” That was then, this is now – who or what are you now?  You have to understand that it starts to sound a bit lame and, having been at a meeting where three of the eight members introduced themselves as “former CEO,” I realised it was not a label that should be used, if at all possible.  This matters for all sorts of reasons but as, in my case, I want to stay professionally active in my chosen field, it is important that I “lead” with what I am now.

The change in locus has a particular bearing if you want to stay active in a professional sense.  By “locus” I mean that you are now in a very different position, as you are no longer at the centre of the information network which gave a significant extra privilege to your position.  One of the most “alarming” experiences is that after all the kind words of thanks and farewell have been exchanged, the turning off of the tap is immediate and all those privileged information feeds that came with your previous role are now no longer open to you.  All of a sudden you just have the public news feeds from which to draw your information.  This means that the information you gain often lacks the political context which your previous role provided.  It is much harder to judge the value and importance of issues without this.  Having been the ultimate insider, you are suddenly and outsider.

This does have an interesting dimension in that, because you are now judging things from the perspective of a member of the public, you are now in a position to be able to judge the good and the bad of corporate communications, and without getting out the purple crayon and becoming “Mrs or Mr Angry,” you can helpfully feedback to those on “the inside.”

Personally, I have kept my hand in by continuing to write for the charity’s magazine and am now embarking on a research project, which will hopefully enable me to write a history of its first 40 years’ existence.  Maintaining this link has been important to me, and I trust, of value to the charity and its members.

Moved on … arrival?

So, where does that bring me to today? I feel energised and ready for new challenges and feel that a new chapter is opening up for me. What will be written on those pages I don’t yet know, although I have some ideas. The main thing is that I have a core idea of how my capabilities can be used to good effect and a route through which to employ them.

There are a number of things I care about deeply and to which I am now confident I can make a continued positive contribution, such as public involvement in the natural environment, food and forestry policy.  The role I can now foresee is one of research, writing and engagement in these areas.  Some of this engagement I can now predict, other things are less so and will relate to the needs and opportunities that arise.  

In summary, “moving on”, isn’t simply a process of moving from one role to another – it feels like my mind and my energies have been freed by the flux and the process of the past 12 months.  My mindset has completely changed and the landscape I now inhabit feels to me to be a much broader and more interesting one than the position I came from.  This is saying nothing about my former role, but it says everything about my forward-focused frame of mind now.

I hope some of these words will have been of value to readers.  It is not a prescription, it is simply a personal statement of how the process of moving on has worked for me. Good luck!

Acknowledgements

The board, staff and members of the Small Woods Association, a fantastic group of people who stimulated me every day in my old job.

CEOs of other small woodland and forestry organisations, who have given their time and support to important conversations along the way.

My wife, Nuala, and wider family for being with me on this journey.

The Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO), who provided great information and advice and support throughout my CEO journey.