Fifth, effective implementation processes seem to require an openness to learning from one's experience and that of others. The introduction of new technology is a subject of industrywide and worldwide study and exchange of experience. The committee was struck by the trend in recent years for managers and union officials to take steps to learn from others' experiences. A noteworthy trend is the frequency with which AMT is used to break with tradition. The dominant theme of the policies outlined above is that they were intended to accommodate all parties with a stake in the organization, and thereby to enlist their support.
Employees gain better information, learning and retraining opportunities, higher skilled jobs.
Where employees are unionized, to the extent that its members gain, the union also gains and participates in a broader agenda of issues affecting the membership. Fortunately, the policies that are especially appropriate for AMT are also in line with the general changes in work force management strategies that have been driven by increased competitive pressure and rising employee expectations. AMT both benefits from these trends and gives additional meaning to them.