Leadership and Context for Comprehensive Internationalization: Senior International Officer Perspectives

In higher education institutions, the Senior International Officer (SIO), described as an
administrator who manages overall internationalization activities, has been identified as the most
important catalyst for campus internationalization. Institutional context, including structural,
cultural, and environmental aspects, can be highly influential in determining the extent to which
internationalization, led and facilitated by the SIO, is realized. This basic qualitative study
examines the intersection of leadership and institutional context as mediators of the
internationalization process, a perspective which is lacking in the current literature on the SIO
role.
To better understand the perspectives of SIOs on how organizational context and culture
shape their roles as implementers of comprehensive internationalization, semi-structured
interviews were conducted with 11 participants currently working in an SIO role at a university
receiving a national award for internationalization. Strategic planning documents serve as a
secondary data source. A qualitative thematic analysis of the interview and documentary data
was performed using an inductive coding process. Findings suggest that the roles of strategist,
networker, and advocate are key to the SIO’s successful navigation of institutional context.
Furthermore, the specifics of each institution’s distinctive context may be more influential for the
SIO’s role than any commonalities between institutions of the same type, as defined by size,
funding model, or Carnegie classification. Implications for professional practice include a
renewed focus for SIOs on the strategic alignment of internationalization with the institutional
mission, the development of sustainable cross-campus networks to raise visibility and manage
perceptions, and a willingness to experiment as a way of demonstrating value to the wider
campus community.