The 47-year-old had been in charge of the women’s programme since 2005, apart from two years between 2012 and 2014, when Kerry was temporarily in the performance director role for the Great Britain and England hockey setup.
During that time he led them to Olympic gold (Rio 2016), bronze (London 2012), and the European title in 2015; while they also secured World Cup, Commonwealth and Champions Cup honours.
In the same period the GB and England men have claimed just two international bronze medals.
“The women’s team are ranked number two in the world and are the reigning Olympic gold medallists and it’s almost the blue chip programme,” said Kerry.
“I was really torn as I have a lot of loyalty to so many of the players on the women’s programme and we had done a lot of rebuilding after Rio, but I had to think about whether a fresh impetus was needed.
“It’s definitely not a promotion, it’s the same role with a different gender, but I do see it as a good move for all of the programmes and myself personally.”
Kerry suffered a heart attack in July last year, but made a rapid recovery and says that his health concerns are in the past.
“Obviously it was a big moment in my life, but I’m physically doing really well and feel energised by my new role,” added the father of two.