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Andrew Flanagan is to resign as chairman of the Scottish Police Authority.
Mr Flanagan had come under heavy criticism from two Holyrood committees over governance and transparency at the SPA, with MSPs calling for him to go.
Following a meeting with the justice secretary, Mr Flanagan said he would step down to avoid being a distraction to the new 10-year policing strategy.
He will stay in post until a successor is appointed.
Holyrood's public audit committee and the justice sub-committee on policing have both criticised Mr Flanagan, with the former raising "very serious concerns" and the latter saying they "do not have confidence" in his leadership.
The police watchdog is also investigating governance at the SPA after a board member quit amid a row over meetings being held behind closed doors and Mr Flanagan's failure to circulate critical correspondence.
'Significant progress'
Mr Flanagan was appointed chairman of the SPA board in September 2015.
In his resignation letter, he said he had made "significant progress on a number of fronts", including putting together a long-term strategy and recruiting a new chief constable in Phil Gormley.
He said he had "put in place changes to the governance process" following recent criticism, but noted "prolonged and continued debate in the media and in parliament" which was "not helpful to the SPA or policing more generally".
He said he did not want the ongoing debate to "get in the way" of the 10-year policing strategy.
Mr Flanagan said the debate "has become quite personalised and has impacted on me and my family" and added: "This is not something that I wish to endure further."
He said: "I have therefore taken the decision that it would be in the best interests of policing if I were to step down from my role as chair of the SPA."
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