MEANING OF SPAN OF CONTROL

  Span of Control means the number of subordinates, employees or managers who work under one head.

Difference between narrow and wide span of control: Span of Control can be divided into narrow and wide span of control. When a very few people report to a head and a chain is made that way upward for controlling them, then it is called narrow span of control. In a narrow span, a department may have three or four sections and under each section head, there will be another two or three sub section and under each sub section there could be nine or ten employees. But in the case of wide span control of span, there may be 20, 30 or more subordinates working under one head.

Factors that influence span of control: There are many factors that influence span of control in different ways. The time that a manager gets to spend with his subordinates is the fundamental factor. There is some optimal limit to the number of subordinates a manager can have. Besides, several sub factors emerge as influencing factors based on the time factor, such as training, verifiable objectives, speed of change, organization structure, written and oral meeting, effective interaction, specialists, competency of managers, subordinate readiness, need for balance, process of organizing etc. A high level of training is demanded in wide span and also wide span demands effective interaction and meeting more than narrow span. Likewise wide span demands clear task definition and delegation while this can be much less in a narrow span. If there are a greater number of specialists at the top level, a wide span will be preferred. So also it is to be noted that when the speed of change is high, a wide span may not be practical from a communication perspective. However, if the subordinates are mature and are willing to assume responsibility, a wide span works well. In other words, the number should be within a range of seven to ten for an effective communication and control. However it depends on the nature of the industry and technology. In a computerized situation, there can be more people, say 40 to 50 under one head. Span of control is nowadays commonly used in business management, especially in human resource management for a smooth and effective administration and control. However, it is always preferable to keep a balance between narrow and wide span of control for the administrative system to be very effective and systematic.