[1] After retiring from his 40 years of military service, Ehsan ul Haq engaged in the corporate sector where he managed the businesses in the healthcare industry, and often offers his public speaking skills on the issues of foreign policy of Pakistan concerning the Arab League.

[13] On 7 October 2001, Lt-Gen. Ehsan was surprisingly appointed as the Director-General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (DG ISI) as part of a major reshuffle that took place when President Pervez Musharraf went to dismissed his key army generals involved in the military takeover in 1999.

[13] His appointment was in response of removal of the ISI director, Mahmud Ahmed, after the terrorist attacks took place in the United States in September 2001 which was followed by the American invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001.

[10] Furthermore, he was described as "keenly aware of big picture issues with viewing of strong support for the democracy, advocating that Pakistan needs a legitimate civilian democratic government" and "open with American officials".

[18] However, in 2007, Gen. Ehsan openly admitted when he testified his failure to end the violence and expulsion of Central Asian and Afghan Arabs in the country noting that, "the al-Qaeda and the Taliban militants used the 2006 peace agreement to regroup and carry out terrorist attacks in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.

"[18] In 2007, Gen. Ehsan sought his retirement after his testimony in the Washington D.C. in United States and went to join the corporate world eventually becoming the CEO of the Pakistan–Libya Holding Company, an investment firm.

[1] In 2017, Ehsan vehemently criticized the Nawaz administration over its strict neutrality, calling for supporting the military intervention by Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates in the Yemeni Civil War.