In 2022, just over half of higher education institutions surveyed by the American Council on Education (ACE) reported having a Senior International Officer (SIO), described as an administrator who manages overall internationalization activities. The SIO, along with the president of an institution, 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, this study is guided by theoretical frameworks drawn from the field of higher education internationalization as well as organizational culture and by the following research questions: (1) How do SIOs perceive their roles in the implementation of comprehensive internationalization initiatives? (2) How do SIOs engage with organizational context in their implementation of strategic internationalization goals? 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. The variation between the different institutional types, environments, and cultures may ultimately be less important than the extent to which SIOs are able to understand their own institutional mission and strategy and its wider context and adapt accordingly. 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. This study adds to the growing literature on the SIO role by filling a gap on the influence of institutional context and culture on this important leadership position and forms a basis for future directions in research that can add a fresh perspective through alternative participant samples, research designs, and theoretical frameworks. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]