International Rugby Board chief executive Mike Miller is to step down after 10 years in the role.
America-born Miller will also leave his post as managing director of Rugby World Cup Limited after the re-election of Bernard Lapasset as IRB president.
Miller has overseen three Rugby World Cups, the re-admission of rugby union into the Olympic Games and the growth of the Sevens World Series.
"We have achieved a lot in the last decade," Miller said in a statement.
"It was an honour and a privilege. The game has grown around the world and with its major events going to Asia and Eastern Europe for the first time the platform has been established for rugby to become a truly global sport."
Miller will leave at the end of January, and Lapasset said: "Mike has achieved much during his 10 years at the IRB, which is a much stronger organisation than when he joined in 2002.
"The game is in great shape but Mike will be a hard act to follow.
"But with my newly reaffirmed four-year mandate, a revamped IRB executive committee, a soon-to-be refreshed Rugby World Cup board and a vibrant council and staff, we have the tools in place to continue to drive the game forward."
