Northern Ireland police chief Sir Hugh Orde was announced as the new president of the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) today.
He beat British Transport Police chief constable Ian Johnston and Cambridgeshire police chief Julie Spence in a ballot of senior officers across Britain.
Mr Orde is now expected to leave the PSNI in the autumn after seven years in charge.
The 50-year-old from Haslemere in Surrey became PSNI chief constable in September 2002. His contract was initially for a five year period and this was extended for up to another three years effective from September 2007.
He has been credited with steering the PSNI through a turbulent phase after it was established in 2001 to replace the old Royal Ulster Constabulary.
He will depart as the PSNI faces arguably its biggest challenge to date, namely the recent upsurge in dissident republican violence that saw a police constable and two British soldiers murdered last month. His tenure was also marked by a failure to solve several high-profile crimes, including the Omagh bombing, the £26 million Northern Bank robbery and the murder of Belfast man Robert McCartney.
The Northern Ireland Policing Board said the process of appointing Mr Orde's successor will begin shortly.
Policing Board chairman Professor Sir Desmond Rea said: "Whilst I deeply regret losing Sir Hugh Orde, I am nevertheless delighted that he has been appointed president of Acpo; and on behalf of the board I congratulate him on his success.
"Sir Hugh will bring considerable skills and professional experience to this role and his election to the post by his peers is evidence of the high esteem in which he is held."
SDLP Policing Board member Dolores Kelly praised Mr Orde for successfully managing the transition of policing, with 26 per cent of the PSNI's ranks coming from the nationalist community. "There is broad agreement that Hugh Orde will be a hard act to follow, but in a way that understates his achievement," the Nationalist MLA said.
The full-time Acpo presidency runs for a period of four years, with a requirement to seek a refreshed mandate at two years. The organisation's 341 members are police officers of Assistant Chief Constable rank and above.
Acpo is an independent body which leads and co-ordinates the direction and development of the police services in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Earlier this year Mr Orde lost out to Sir Paul Stephenson in the race to succeed Sir Ian Blair as Metropolitan Police Commissioner, having made it down to the final two candidates.