Growth of a human resources perspective among work institutions, mirrored by the lifelong learning perspective in educational institutions, has created an opportunity for collaboration among and within education, business, labor, and government. Barriers to such interaction between education and work include different formats for teaching and learning (emphasis on team effort in work settings, but little team teaching or learning in education) and different motivational settings. Four basic functions seem to characterize institutional relationships between education and work institutions. These are (1) learning experiences and services, (2) flow of human resources, (3) new ideas and products, and (4) strategy development. One strategy/mechanism for maintaining leadership communication across the business-labor-education sectors over an extended period of time is the local collaborative council. Collaborative councils can be distinguished by these criteria: membership is representative of major community sectors with collaborative mechanisms intended to join and serve the interest of more than two sectors, they are self-organized and performance-oriented, they represent shared responsibility, and organizational activity is sustained through formal council organization with assistance from a staff director or coordinator. (YLB)