Redirecting.work
David Edwards:
You Can Go Your Own Way, But Don’t Go Alone
When I spoke with David Edwards to write this pivot story, he was candid about being in that in-between chapter many seasoned professionals recognize. Not retired. Not fully launched into the next thing. Rather in motion, trying to make the right next move while staying optimistic, useful, and visible.
David is 66 this spring, based in the Hampshire countryside in England. He describes himself as someone who is “not sure exactly which pivot I should be pivoting towards,” and he named it clearly, a reset phase. What makes his moment especially interesting is that his reset is not empty time. It is filled with a fresh body of work that deserves attention. A book!
What He Pivoted From
David has spent years inside enterprise environments where strategic workforce planning is both essential and, ironically, precarious. He put it bluntly. When you pursue long-term workforce capability, you can become exposed in organizations that reward short-term results. Redundancy, he noted, can start to feel like an “occupational hazard” in this kind of role.
When his most recent role ended, David was “relatively sanguine,” in part because he had already completed something substantial. In eight months, he wrote a book. That changed the emotional shape of the moment. Instead of only a job search for a corporate role, he found himself holding a platform.
Current Direction: Becoming a Voice in His Own Right
David’s book is The Strategic Workforce Planning Handbook. He did not set out with a burning desire to become an author. The publisher approached him after seeing his writing and perspective on LinkedIn. They sensed, correctly, that he had something to say.
What he wanted to contribute was not more theory for theory’s sake. David has lived the messy real world of workforce planning. He has watched politics derail good work, seen “simple” become complicated, and learned what actually helps when things do not go to plan. His aim in the book is to demystify the field and make it usable. He respects the theory, but he writes for practitioners who have to make decisions with imperfect data, shifting priorities, and the realities of leadership dynamics.
He also brings a distinct style to the topic. In the UK, he believes it’s a “Marmite” writing style, i.e., love it or hate it. Slightly whimsical, slightly provocative, sometimes left field, always trying to translate jargon into what people are really doing and really feeling. That is part of his differentiator. He can give voice to the experience because he has been there.
The twist is that this “author moment” is happening while he is still working out his economic equation. In an ideal world, David would write, speak, and educate. In the real world, he feels pressure to be what he jokingly called a “consultucator,” combining expertise, content, and paid work. The tension is not a problem. It is simply the messy middle in action.
Advice to Others (Even If He Hesitates to Call It Advice)
David was humble about offering guidance, but he said something that matters. Do not go it alone. Talk to people who have already passed through this “sound barrier,” those who have made the shift from corporate identity to independent visibility, or who have returned to the right corporate role after a reset.
He is also learning, in real time, that publishing a book does not instantly trigger invitations. Visibility takes repetition. Momentum takes structure. Content takes consistency. And if you do not “feed the fire,” you can disappear fast.
Which is exactly why this is a good moment to pay attention to David’s work. The book is not just a credential. It is a practical guide from someone who has done the work, learned the hard lessons, and can explain the craft in a way that feels real.
If you care about building a workforce plan that survives contact with reality, David’s handbook is worth your time, as are his regular LinkedIn newsletters, soon to be available also on Substack.