This paper argues that while Australia has been enormously successful enrolling international students, this may have distracted institutional leaders’ from their core education business. The paper reviews how international education has grown to be a formative and important facet of Australian tertiary education. This growth owes much to leaders, and review of large-scale survey results shows that commercial capabilities are very important for contemporary leaders. At the same time, however, there is evidence that key facets of quality may be in need of closer review. As Australia’s international education effort matures, it is argued that this needs to be underpinned by leadership focused on engaging students in effective educational practices.