Reports that Fairfax metro flagships the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age will share an editor-in-chief have been denied, despite the departure of Andrew Holden from the Melbourne paper's role.

A clue behind Holden's decision may be in a statement in a document outlining planned changes which says topic editors for national topics "will work across all newsrooms".

Editorial director Sean Aylmer says "simplifying" newsroom workflows will help reporters and editors create content "that meets the 24/7 demands of our audiences".

Editorial will be focussed on content creation and distribution people "focussed on (its) dissemination".

A statement says the Australian media group has begun consultations on the introduction of a new editorial structure for the two metro dailies, with plans to replicate the newsroom structures of the Wall Street Journal and (London) Daily Telegraph.

"We will be consulting across the newsroom extensively over the next ten days and looking for feedback before finalising the model," Aylmer says.

A document outlining the plan details editor-in-chief and editor positions for each title, supported by separate heads for digital and print channels. Topic editors will have "substantially expanded roles" and be responsible for creation of content used to drive audience growth, with innovation fostered through an "audience first" approach. National topics editors will work across all newsrooms, while other topic roles - such as justice, state and senior writers - will be replicated in Sydney and Melbourne.

Fairfax's WAToday and Brisbane Times online operations, and Good Weekend and Sunday Life inserted magazines "will continue to operate as usual" reporting to the Sydney editor-in-chief.

Aylmer says a number of new roles will be created, and "some roles altered".

The changes follow news that the company is set to shed 70 jobs in New Zealand as it looks to move some production of its metro newspapers back to Pagemasters

Holden leaves Fairfax after 13 years, the last eight as a daily editor - including a term in Christchurch during its worst recent earthquakes - with three-and-a-half years as editor-in-chief of The Age.

• Long hand: A report in The Australian on Friday suggests the new editor-in-chief of The Age may work in Sydney rather than city where the newspaper is published: "the Melbourme editor-in-chief is expected to be one of eight chiefs based in Sydney reporting to the editorial director," Michael Bodey writes. He also quotes Aylmer's ABC radio comment that he and Holden, "agreed together he would move on".

Pictured: Andrew Holden speaking at WAN-Ifra India in 2014