Scotland coach Ian McGeechan will step down after the 2003 World Cup next autumn and succeed Jim Telfer as the Scottish Rugby Union's director of rugby.
Telfer will retire from his post following the tournament in Australia next year.
McGeechan said: "At this stage we do not have a specific candidate in mind but my successor will be someone who has vast experience of professional rugby and coaching at the highest levels of the game".
The SRU will advertise ''worldwide'' for McGeechan's successor, but chief executive Bill Watson believes the experience of the former Lions coach will be invaluable to the future of the game.
Watson said: "We see great strength in the experience that Ian McGeechan has here in Scotland and also on the world stage and that's why we are delighted to announce that Ian will succeed Jim as Director of Rugby after the 2003 Rugby World Cup.
"Ian is unique - the only man to coach three successive British and Irish Lions tours, and the man who coached Scotland to the Grand Slam in 1990 and fourth place in the 1991 Rugby World Cup. He also has a very firm understanding of the commercial realities of the game from his time as Director of Rugby at Northampton Saints.
"If you were to write a spec for your ideal candidate as next director of rugby, Ian McGeechan would score top marks in every category."