In April, the Washington Post announced a thoroughgoing editorial re-org plan. It basically wiped away the ranks of its “assistant managing editors” and created a new “universal desk.” That repository of fast-thinking news talent, according to the plan, is to put the finishing touches on all kinds of copy and place it on various platforms, including print, Web, and mobile.

Well, that was the vision.

Now comes the construction. Evidently you can’t just rearrange a few desks, put up a sign, and declare it “Universal Desk.” You gotta bring in the crews. And as the workers hammer and drywall their way to a reinvented Washington Post, they’re displacing the place’s top leaders.

Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli, for instance, is moving down a flight, from his fifth floor spot to the fourth floor, where he’ll commandeer the office of Managing Editor Raju Narisetti.

A recent memo from a fourth-floor manager made it clear to the staff to observe protocol when it comes to the Big Boss: “The counter directly in front of my office will hold newspapers for Marcus (please do not remove).”

Photo courtesy of Bright Meadow