The newspaper clearly needed to reduce the steps required for a story to appear in print or online. But the maps were only a snapshot. If the Times Union were an ailing patient, the maps identified symptoms. A doctor would need to diagnose and suggest a cure for the underlying illness. That meant recommendations based on the revelations of the map, and an implementation plan.

Smith and Aldam decided that the newspaper should doctor itself. Rather than ask Myers to provide recommendations in her capacity as an independent expert, they decided to ask Times Union staff to lead the effort. Myers would act as advisor. ^[14] This combination, they hoped, would take advantage of Myers’ outside perspective but avoid the perception that changes were imposed on the newsroom by an outsider. An internally generated mandate, Smith believed, would better inspire the reporters and other employees to contribute to the effort. Together, Myers and an insider team could produce a plan for the paper’s immediate future which with luck would be both visionary and practicable.

Smith asked Mary Fran Gleason , a Times Union managing editor since 2000, to be project manager. A key player was Associate Editor Mike Spain , who had been the project leader when the old pagination system was installed in 1991 and had extensive experience and knowledge of newsroom technology. Gleason in turn assembled a team of seven project leaders, including Spain, to develop a program charter and identify the critical aspects of the initiative that would transform the newsroom. Other team members included senior newsroom staff and the paper’s director of online coverage.

Listen to Gleason discuss the reaction to mapping the process.

Gleason had already seen Myers’ maps in draft form in late 2006. “Oh, it hurt to look at them,” recalls Gleason. “It just said everything is so laborious.” ^[15] But the maps also suggested specific changes and directions the paper could consider. It was Gleason and her team’s job to decide which changes would transform the newspaper into a competitive and effective presence online while retaining the standards for quality the paper had established for its print product.

Gleason and her team decided to reduce the number of newsroom steps by at least half—a goal they considered ambitious but necessary. This meant the newsroom had to optimize staff resources and eliminate process bottlenecks. News had to get on the Web quickly, and it needed to be accurate. But stories also had to be smarter. The Times Union needed an organizational structure that freed up time so reporters could focus on writing stories that gave the paper’s audiences more than they could get elsewhere. Stories that provided context, local flavor, and interpretation—plus a vivid multimedia presentation for the online version—would hopefully reward loyal readers and attract new ones. Increased readership would bring back advertisers, creating a virtuous circle. Reducing the number of editorial steps would also, Gleason’s team hoped, give reporters and editors the time to learn new skills.

Gleason and Smith agreed to keep the team’s specific plans confidential for the time being while they fielded proposals from potential CMS vendors and the team refined its vision. “People get all excited about something that’s not really a given yet,” Gleason says. The staff was told in general terms that change was afoot, and they were aware that a new CMS was coming, but specifics about possible job changes and larger newsroom transformations were kept largely under wraps. “We wanted to keep the staff informed ... but we also didn’t want it to be disruptive to the day-to-day work,” she adds.