After Richards' army career was cut short by injury, he entered the Diplomatic Service, serving in New Delhi and Namibia and holding a number of senior posts at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.[2] He was the first High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Namibia.[3]
He was director of the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) in Cheltenham from 1998 to 2003. On his departure from GCHQ Richards said that the role was "... the best job I have ever had or ever expect to have... but you need to keep things fresh."[4] Richards would later criticise Malcolm Rifkind, the chair of Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee, saying that it was "not a very good idea" for any former senior minister of the ruling party to chair the committee.[5] Richards questioned whether Rifkind was therefore "well-placed to command confidence" when holding the agencies to account.[5] Richards was the chairman of the trustees of Bletchley Park from 2006 to 2011 and the chairman of the Imperial War Museum from December 2011.[6]
An honorary senior fellow at the University of Birmingham, Richards was appointed director of its Centre for Studies in Security and Diplomacy in April 2007.[9] He currently sits on the board of governors at Rendcomb College.[10]
^"High Commission history". British High Commission in Windhoek. 3 August 2011. Archived from the original on 1 October 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2012.