A successful leadership term isn’t just measured by the work you produce, but also by the health of the organization you leave behind.
It’s the end of the semester, and your editor-in-chief is graduating.
You’ve been told countless times that leadership turnover is just part of student media. But what does that actually mean for your organization? How do you prevent years of institutional knowledge from walking out the door with a diploma?
Without a clear plan for transitions, student media organizations are forced to reinvent the wheel every year, losing momentum, breaking workflows, and putting pressure on new leaders to learn everything from scratch.
This guide will walk you through how to build a system that preserves knowledge and ensures your publication doesn’t just survive turnover but thrives through it.
In student media, leadership changes generally fall into two categories:
You know these are coming. The editor is graduating, studying abroad, or their term is simply over. The risk here is procrastination — the handoff gets rushed, knowledge transfer is incomplete, and the new leader is left with more questions than answers.
These happen without warning. A leader burns out, faces a personal emergency, or quits unexpectedly. Without a system in place, this can cause chaos, stall production, and damage morale.
The strategy for handling both is the same: create systems that make knowledge accessible to everyone, not just the person at the top.
The best transitions start long before anyone is planning to leave. Building a resilient organization is an ongoing project, not a last-minute task at the end of the year.
On your very first day in a new role, create a document with this title. Every time you make a mistake, learn a shortcut or figure out a better way to do something, add it to the list. This document will become a real-world guide for the next person to hold your position.
One of the most dangerous phrases in a student media organization is, “Only they know how to do that.” Your goal is to eliminate these single points of failure. Knowledge of how to do things should belong to the organization, not one individual.
For example, instead of leaving all the passwords to social media accounts with the EIC, try creating a shared password manager that leadership can access.
Create standard operating procedures for recurring tasks. Think of these as recipes, not rigid rules. Use checklists, screenshots, or even short screen recordings to show how things are done. Some of the tasks that can be documented include:
When you’re about to graduate or finish out your term in a role, your job is to ensure a smooth handoff of the baton to the next person. Make sure these are a part of that transition.
Let potential future leaders sit with you before they have to do it solo. Invite them to budget meetings. Let them take the lead on a low-stakes project. The more exposure junior staff members get to the challenges and decisions of leadership, the more prepared they will be to step up when the time comes.
Normalize the process of passing the knowledge down. Ask these questions: Does every major role in your organization have a clear description of their responsibilities? Is there an onboarding checklist for new section editors? Making these tools a standard part of your operation ensures that transitions are a process.
A successful leadership term isn’t just measured by the work you produce, but also by the health of the organization you leave behind. Turning just one of these ideas into a real process is a big win for your organization’s stability. You can start small, but make sure to start today.
We’re here to help with whatever you need, from navigating our resource hub to unlocking more training and support for your student media organization. Reach out to us via email, or set up a 1:1 coaching session.
%20pub.png)
%20600x200.png)