5 tips for promoting and managing change in the newsroom
On November 7 and 8, two intense days of conferences were held in Nice, as part of the European IQ Media project. Dedicated to innovation in the media, these days brought together renowned professionals from all over Europe to debate and exchange views on the current and future challenges facing the media industry. Among them, Frederica Cherubini and Thomas Seymat gave a talk : How to promote culture change and lead change in the newsroom ?
They addressed five key points for journalists and managers on how to drive change in the newsroom.
Read the summary here.
Why talk about it ?
With the rise of social networking and artificial intelligence, the media have no choice but to adapt by making changes within their newsrooms. How to train your teams and support them through change? Thomas Seymat and Federica Cherubini look back at the central role of the manager and offer the keys to meeting this challenge.
After working as a journalist, Thomas Seymat is now Head of Digital and Innovation for News Arte in Strasbourg. Frederica Cherubini is Director of Leadership Development at theReuters Institute.
1. Know your employees 🗣️
To create the conditions for these changes in newsrooms, managers need to offer employees the best possible working conditions. To do this, they need to know all the journalists, their motivations and expectations, and be aware that they are all different. “I meet each of my employees for an hour a week. We talk about work and personal life. This allows me to keep an eye on them and get to know them better”, explains Thomas Seymat.
2. Don’t fear failure 🌟
Failure is inevitable. When a manager or journalist has a project, they must be aware that the objectives will not be achieved at the first attempt. “This is a difficult point when you’re a journalist because you have to move fast and you don’t want to lose credibility with the public, but being aware of this from the outset is an advantage”, says Thomas Seymat. “The key word is: test. You need this testing stage to improve and move forward”, adds Frederica Cherubini. So managers need to be patient with journalists.
3. Buy-in to succeed together 🤝
Journalists must make an effort to participate in the manager’s projects. They need to work as a team if they are to make progress. “It’s essential that the manager and the journalists think collectively. They are in the same boat. It’s their best bargaining chip”, says Frederica Cherubini.
4. Appoint an ambassador 🧭
Within a team, certain journalists can stand out. “Some people want to have responsibility and feel important. By getting to know your team well, you can identify the most ambitious”, advises Thomas Seymat. Journalists can become real ambassadors. “They are the drivers of change”, he continues.
5. Be patient 🙏
Achieving change is a long adventure, and giving up can be tempting. “Change is a marathon, not a sprint. You have to be persistent and resilient. You mustn’t be uncompromising with yourself ”, advises Frederica Cherubini. To avoid giving up, it’s essential to learn to celebrate small victories with your teams. The speakers also insisted the importance of congratulating employees on their work.
LAURA KHIL (In partnership with IUT de Cannes, school of journalism)
See our videos to learn more about those two amazing days, just here.
