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This is a primer on software licensing, which is a pressing issue for industry practitioners who are confronted with many agreements involving trading systems. This article deals with the practical “how‐tos” for licensing as well as with certain intellectual property concerns.

The purpose of this study is to examine the democratic nature of collaboration and related principal influences in one successful Southern Arizona elementary school in a changing demographic and border context in the US Southwest and where the principal did not share the same ethnic identity/cultural background.

This case study, using Furman's ethic of community framework, draws upon a secondary analysis of existing qualitative data from one urban elementary school as part of a larger multi‐case study. Participants included the Principal, Assistant Principal, eight teachers, and six parents.

Findings revealed limitations in democratic collaborative processes associated with school turnaround on account of principal pressure for compliance with personal agendas and packaged curricular reform expectations. Top‐down managerial practices sacrificed inclusion of stakeholders, community relationship building, and room for more authentic democratic grassroots innovation.

Furman's ethic of community enabled deeper analysis of democratic processes at a level typically not articulated in other case studies associated with the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP).

The purpose of this paper is to draw from data collected as part of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP) and present cases of democratic and heroic leadership from three countries, discussing to what extent successful school principals in each of their research sites (Melbourne, Australia; Umeå, Sweden; Arizona and Texas in the USA) carry old and new perspectives of heroism in their leadership. In particular the paper explores two questions: first, how do school principals describe aspects of heroic and post-heroic leadership in their practices? and second, how do these heroic and post-heroic leadership practices meet contemporary demands such as accountability standards and build inclusive and collaborative school communities in challenging contexts?

Multiple-perspective case studies involving semi-structured individual and group interviews with principals, teachers, students, parents and school board members were used to understand the contribution of principals and other leadership to school success.

The definitions of heroic and post-heroic leadership are inadequate in defining successful principal leadership. The Australian, Swedish and American principals showed characteristics of both heroic and post-heroic leadership. They showed heroic qualities such as: inspiring and motivating others; challenging the status quo; showing integrity in conflicting situations; putting duty before self; taking risks to champion a better way; showing courage to stand up to those in authority; advocating for students in struggling neighbourhoods under the scrutiny of both district and public expectations; and, showing uncommon commitment. Yet our principals showed post-heroic leadership such as involving others in decision making and recognising that school success depended on collective effort, and being sensitive to community needs through a deep respect for the local culture.

The research shows that we may need to redefine and recast our images of who school principals are today, and what they do to generate academic success for students. Both heroic and post-heroic images of leadership are needed to explain successful school leadership.

Populations in the United States and Australia are also becoming increasingly culturally diverse. In the United States, for example, it is projected that between 1990 and 2050, the percentage of the US population of Hispanic origin will be almost triple, growing from 9% to 25% (making them the largest minority group by far) and the percentage Asian population will be more than double, growing from 3% to 8%. During the same period, the percentage of Black population will remain relatively stable increasing only slightly from 12% to 14%; while the percentage of White population will decline sharply from 76% to 53%. Australia has a long history of skill- and humanitarian-based migration policy. This has resulted in a culturally diverse society, especially in parts of the capital cities of the states and territories. This emphasis looks likely to continue in the future, and will continue to change the Australian society as the humanitarian needs change across the world.