Hearts & Minds: Guest editing: connecting leaders with readers

Reading The Sun yesterday produced a double take. There, at the top of the Business page, was Sodali client, Graham Stapleton, CEO of Halfords. He was guest editing the business coverage for the day. Below were three articles relating to the retailer. One, by-lined by Graham in which he let rip on the impact of raising National Insurance for employers, another on Halfords’ expansion of its apprenticeships scheme and the third on how it is revamping stores. There were other pieces, on Unilever’s change of management and a jobs survey. The usual fixtures of major share prices and the FTSE’s performance were present. As a package, it read well and looked good, all put together by Stapleton under the watchful eye of Business Editor Ashley Armstrong.

It's smart of Ashley and The Sun to encourage this. Now and again, there is always room for an alternative voice. They approach that day’s world from their angle and can vent their concerns. Of course, they are not allowed free rein - it’s still a newspaper after all, with readers and a reputation to consider. The Sun isn’t alone. In the past I’ve made way for various guest editors, invited to do my job for the day. At The Independent, we had the likes of Elton John, Bono, David Walliams taking the chair. Normally, it was tied to a charitable initiative of theirs, such as the Elton John Aids Foundation or Bono’s (RED). The paper would function as normal around them. They would sit in on meetings, choose which stories they liked, how they wanted them covered, add their own comment, and select pictures and headlines.

As well as putting down their personal mark, what was noticeable was how much they learned, about how the media thinks and operates, how the system functions. They experienced the process from the inside and acquired an understanding of the pressures – the sheer volume of reports coming across at any one time, ferocity of deadlines and the need for speed and quick decision-making. They got to appreciate too, how the brand is paramount, so that the consumer, the reader, always comes first. Also, the staff got to know them. We were seeing a different aspect to the famous singer or comedian. They were not performing but showing us their real side.

Both of us benefited, the paper and them. It’s well worth doing. Don’t be afraid to give it a go.

Chris Blackhurst is one of the UK’s foremost business journalists. He was previously Editor of The Independent and City Editor of the Evening Standard.