Span of control is a human resource management term referring to the number of subordinates a supervisor is responsible for managing. Span of control refers to the number of subordinates under the direct control of a manager or leader. For example, a manager responsible for seven subordinates has a span of control of seven. Usually the span of control can go from narrow (more hierarchical) and wide (flatter organization).
Understanding the span of control
Span of control can be used to measure the efficiency of an organization provided it is considered in the context of organizational structure.
Typically, span of control is either narrow or wide, with each having its strengths and weaknesses.
Management spends more time supervising subordinates and there are more opportunities for growth and development.
However, a narrow span tends to be more expensive as it necessitates the recruitment of comparatively more management staff.
The supervisory nature of hierarchical organizations can also lead to micromanagement and less subordinate empowerment if it is misused.
Other characteristics of a narrow span of control include:
Closer supervision – with fewer subordinates under one manager, the latter can provide more frequent and detailed supervision. This reduces employee autonomy but increases the scope for feedback, mentoring, and clarity around tasks and roles.
Communication – communication channels are typically shorter and more direct with a narrow span of control as there are less management levels. This can lead to more effective communication and faster dissemination of information.
Limited delegation – with a smaller number of subordinates able to share the workload, managers may find themselves more involved in day-to-day operations compared to a company with a wider span of control.
In a flat organizational structure, there is little to no middle management between employees and executives. Therefore it reduces the space between employees and executives to enable an effective communication flow within the organization, thus being faster and leaner.
Management exists to answer questions, solve problems, and encourage employee empowerment through increased responsibility and decision-making power.
Despite the benefits of a wide span, the structure can result in managers becoming overwhelmed by subordinates requiring high levels of direction, support, and supervision.
Conversely, some subordinates who prefer to receive direct instruction may experience decreased morale and job satisfaction.
Other characteristics of a wide span of control:
Increased accountability – under a wide span of control and with less detailed supervision, managers may be required to depend on performance metrics and other objective measures to assess employee performance. For some employee personality types, this will increase accountability and performance.
Enhanced decision-making – decentralized decision-making means decisions are made closer to the frontline by employees with direct knowledge of the situation. This environment encourages quick and efficient decisions and problem-solving.
Leadership skills – managers who possess wide spans of control need to be effective leaders. They must be able to direct where practicable but also have the trust to delegate more of the work to subordinates.
Hybrid
A hybrid span combines wide and narrow depending on the functions associated with a project; this gets closer to a matrix organizational structure.
What is the optimal span of control?
The optimal span of control will of course vary from one organization to the next. Management expert George P. Hattrup suggested four to five reporting levels were sufficient for all but the largest organizations.
In terms of span of control, experts suggest around 15 to 20 subordinates per manager is ideal for most modern companies.
Businesses that want a more nuanced approach to determining their span of control should consider the following points:
Culture
More relaxed and inclusive company cultures tend to favor flatter organizational structures, while more rigid and autocratic cultures tend to favor hierarchies.
Businesses need to consider their current or desired culture when determining a suitable span of control.
Task complexity
Routine, low complexity jobs require less supervision than more complex jobs that are loosely defined and require frequent expert input.
As a result, a narrow span with a higher proportion of managers is more conducive to complex task completion.
Management competence
More experienced managers have a wider span of control than less experienced managers, particularly if supervising menial, low complexity tasks.
Here, it is also useful to consider how qualified the manager is to perform technical, non-managerial aspects of their position.
Employee competence
By the same token, more experienced employees require a wider span of control with less training, direction, and delegation.
Employees with less experience will require a higher proportion of management staff.
Communication
Effective communication channels such as email, instant messaging, video conferencing, and project management tools can streamline communication between managers and their subordinates. This enables leaders to oversee numerous employees which results in a wider span of control.
Technology also enables more up-to-date information exchange, providing managers with access to real-time data about the progress of work, performance metrics, and other relevant metrics.
Based on this information, management is able to make informed decisions and provide timely feedback to a broader cohort of subordinates.
Technology
Technology also empowers employees to perform certain tasks and access information independently without supervision from managers. This can free up managers’ time and allow them to oversee more subordinates.
For example, self-service portals for HR, IT, and other administrative functions enable employees to access information and complete tasks without direct intervention from their superiors.
Technology has also proven useful in the pandemic-induced shift toward remote work and virtual teams. However, some counter that the availability of zero-cost capital since 2020 and the resultant hiring spree in some companies has increased the average manager’s span of control to unmanageable levels.
Geographical dispersion
If subordinates are spread widely over various geographical locations, it may require more effort and time for a manager to oversee and coordinate their work. This limits the number of subordinates a superior can reasonably manage and results in a narrower span of control.
Span of control examples in business
Apple
Tim Cook took over from Steve Jobs as Apple CEO in 2011, and since that time, the number of staff who report directly to him has increased by a factor of about two.
In 2015, The State Journal Register reported that Cook had 17 direct reports – up from 9 when he succeeded Jobs.
While Apple neither confirmed nor denied the number, one could surmise from bios on the company’s executive profile page that the information was accurate.
In any case, there was much discussion about whether this extremely wide span of control was wise or even realistic.
In a 2-hour meeting with 17 people, for example, it was surmised that Cook could only speak with each individual directly for around seven minutes.
Executive director at the MIT Leadership Center Hal Gregersen noted that this would make it difficult for Cook to properly develop his team and understand their strengths and weaknesses.
Fast-food chain KFC has a much narrow span of control with six levels of management in its organizational structure arranged as follows:
Management board (including CEO Sabir Sami, who himself reports to the CEO of parent company Yum! Brands).
General Manager.
Assistant General Manager.
Unit (Branch) Manager, Assistant Unit Manager, and Shift Manager.
Team members, and
Workers.
At the board level, Sami is supported by seven additional executives who manage the company’s operations around the world.
These include a President, COO, and five staff in the areas of marketing, legal, digital transformation, development, and people (culture).
At lower management levels, KFC’s narrow span of control is influenced by the nature of its industry. Managers oversee cooks and cashiers in every restaurant to ensure that customers are satisfied and hygiene standards are maintained.
Like competitor McDonald’s, the narrow span of control enables KFC store management to ensure employees follow SOPs and deliver a consistent product across the company’s thousands of outlets.
While store employees are responsible for a diverse range of customer and food-related tasks, most KFC restaurants are staffed with around 5 to 10 frontline personnel who report directly to the shift or store manager.
Within stores, there may also be junior managers.
Key takeaways
The span of control is a human resource management term referring to the number of subordinates a supervisor is responsible for managing.
The span of control may be categorized in one of two ways. Wide span of control is associated with a flat organizational structure with fewer reporting levels and higher subordinate autonomy. Conversely, narrow span of control is associated with a hierarchical organizational structure with more reporting levels and decreased subordinate autonomy.
The span of control will vary from one company to the next, but there are some important points every organization should consider before choosing an approach. These include company culture, management competence, employee competence, and task complexity.
What is span of control and its types?
The span of control refers to the number of subordinates a supervisor is responsible for managing and the dynamics emerging from it. There are two main types of the span of control: narrow (associated with a hierarchical organizational structure) and broad (associated with a flat organizational structure). A third type is a hybrid approach between wide and narrow, closer to a matrix organizational structure determined according to functions.
Why is span of control important?
Understanding the dynamics behind the span of control is critical to assess whether an organization is well run. Indeed, when a span of control gets too narrow, the organization might be in a micromanaging mode, where managers are not enabling enough decision-making for their teams. In the opposite scenario, of a wide span, an organization is flatter. This works exceptionally well for smaller organizations and startups that, given the smaller scale, can and must move much quicker.
What is span of control with example?
In the case of a company like Airbnb, you have a flat organizational structure with product teams organized around critical products. In an organization like Apple today, at its scale, it works more as a hierarchical organization, with some product-based grouping between some key divisions.
In a functional organizational structure, groups and teams are organized based on function. Therefore, this organization follows a top-down structure, where most decision flows from top management to bottom. Thus, the bottom of the organization mostly follows the strategy detailed by the top of the organization.
In a flat organizational structure, there is little to no middle management between employees and executives. Therefore it reduces the space between employees and executives to enable an effective communication flow within the organization, thus being faster and leaner.
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Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
