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In the current knowledge‐based economic climate, the success of an organisation is inextricably linked to the individual. This article seeks to consider the key relationships between the individual, lifelong learning, the workplace and employability in the context of the knowledge society. The aim is to extend understanding of these relationships and their impact on future employability.

The paper examines the key relationships between the individual, lifelong learning, the workplace and employability from the perspective of the Programme for University Industry Interface (PUII).

The discussions focus on the implications of the current situation for the future and suggest ecology as a metaphor for the way in which learning is intertwined in a complex environment that incorporates the learner, the workplace, the external company environment and the knowledge repositories.

The paper sheds light on these particular issues through the findings of the PUII. The authors also explore potential avenues for advancement or resolution of some issues, e.g. strategies for developing self‐directed learners and approaches to workplace learning based on these findings.

This paper is based on a review of current literature and addresses issues relating to communication and information technology (C&IT) provision in UK higher educational institutions from a number of perspectives. Suggests that potentially technology can improve the learning environment, but may not yet be the best medium for all situations.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue of the Journal of European Industrial Training. A brief commentary on each of the articles is provided and the whole issue is set in the context of national policy and research methodology from which the Programme for University Industry Interface derives its impetus. The paper highlights the potential and the problems of active engagement of government, industry and education in addressing issues of sustaining national economic competitiveness in a global economy.

The discussion in this paper is predominantly desk‐based, using a combination of primary and secondary sources to generate an analysis of policy discourse and its realisation in practice.

In addition to commenting on the findings from each of the papers in the special issue, this paper draws positive attention to the partnership model used by the government of Ireland in policy formation. It also indicates that the partnership model in general, and the methodology for enhancing it in particular, are well‐regarded in industry but that their full acceptance in higher education has not yet been fully tested.

The paper allows the reader of the special issue to set each of the other papers in a context and to interpret them against a national agenda for sustainability in graduate employment.