The leadership of school principals is an enormously powerful influence on the quality of schools and the learning of pupils. This book examines successful school leaders. It describes similarities and differences in their work in countries ranging from England to Australia, the United States to Norway, Sweden to Hong Kong. Bringing together case study research, the book helps explain what all successful principals do and the ways in which context shapes some of their work. It presents an interesting and rich picture of successful principals in different socio-cultural contexts and their responses to national accountability policies.