The new chief executive of the Federation of Awarding Bodies has suddenly resigned with immediate effect, FE Week has learned, after just two months in post.
Kion Ahadi was appointed in November and officially led the awarding membership body from February.
Staff and members of the federation were told this afternoon that Ahadi had stood down for personal reasons.
A statement from the FAB board said: “Due to personal reasons, Kion Ahadi has made the decision to stand down from his position as chief executive at the Federation of Awarding Bodies. Kion has enjoyed his short time at FAB and recognised the fantastic contribution of its members.”
FAB is the membership body for more than 120 awarding organisations.
John McNamara, who has previously led FAB on an interim basis twice, will step back in once more as interim chief executive until a permanent replacement is found.
McNamara is the non-executive chair of Innovate Awarding. FAB’s new chair Charlotte Bosworth is managing director of Innovate Awarding.
The FAB and Innovate boards have agreed extra governance arrangements to mitigate any conflicts of interest. A full board meeting was held this afternoon to approve McNamara’s appointment as interim CEO.
At the time of his appointment, Ahadi said he accepted the CEO gig at FAB due to its “vision to improve the quality of technical, professional, and vocational education to support social mobility, and change lives”.
Ahadi was appointed following the resignation of Tom Bewick in May 2023.
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