Colonel (Retired) Richard Goodman joins Cobseo in May 2022 as the new Director of Operations. Throughout his military career Richard has pursued a pathway devoted to supporting Armed Forces personnel, their dependants, communities and, most recently, veterans. His last assignment was triple-hatted as the UK Defence Attaché Kathmandu, the Commander British Gurkhas Nepal, and the in-country Director of the Gurkha Welfare Trust – in which role he was responsible for delivering individual and community support to almost 26,000 Gurkha veterans and dependants in Nepal, including the operation of two residential homes, notably at a time beset by the global pandemic.
In the Joint Service arena, he previously headed the Personnel Operations (J1) Branch of the Permanent Joint Headquarters, Northwood, delivering support to personnel deployed on overseas operations, as well as to individuals and accompanying family members living in all of the UK’s Permanent Joint Operating Bases overseas.
In the Single Service arena, he established and led the Army’s first centralised Personnel Operations Branch for the UK from Headquarters Support Command (now Regional Command), notably leading in the development of Transition support for Army Service Leavers at a time of Defence restructuring and redundancy. During this assignment he also assumed responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the Army Recovery Capability for wounded, injured and sick personnel.
Richard Goodman has track record of delivering support to the Armed Forces community despite the most challenging of circumstances, a broad understanding of all three Services, recent lived-experience of military charity operations and is a resolute advocate for improving outcomes for our beneficiary groups.
