There is an increased need for leadership development in higher education around the world. Reported in this paper is an explorative higher education leadership development program developed from an international comparative perspective. This ongoing program is offered to Chinese university administrators at a Canadian university since 2012. This paper hopes to share the design of the program and its potential contribution to the theorizing of leadership development in higher education. The international comparative approach perceives leadership in higher education as closely aligned with different models of governance, and leadership development involves raising system awareness as a foundation for innovation.