APeL R & D is a national centre for interactive and critical research in workplace learning, sustainable regional development and growth. APeL has developed operational cooperation with work life actors in various organisations and at multiple levels.

APeL is a young and successful enterprise. In the year 2009 we celebrated our tenth anniversary. In these past ten years we have experienced a tremendous growth: from 3 to 15 employees; an increase of 400 per cent. During this period APeL has been owned by the municipality of Lindesberg and, up until now, it has been run as a limited liability company. During the year 2010 this ownership form will change, and the company will be transformed into a foundation. APeL is funded solely by revenues from its assignments.

APeL is closer to the academic world and its research than most consultants are, but the centre has an independent position compared with many universities’ research centres. One of the key success factors in the growth of APeL has been that the business has grown freely, outside the existing structures. All of APeL’s staff have an academic degree, and several have a PhD degree or are PhD-students.

APeL faces the second decade of its existence with confidence. We are expecting new challenges of an ever-changing work life that needs to be explored and evaluated. Our mission is, however, still the same: APEL will be a strong and innovative research and development environment that meets the needs of work life of new forms of work learning and competence development. We will continue to be closely linked both to the work life actors and to other leading research environments within the same research fields.