Mechanism
Span of Control
TL;DR
Span of control is the number of direct reports each manager supervises.
Biological branching networks optimize the number of downstream branches at each node to balance resource delivery efficiency against infrastructure costs.
Business Application of Span of Control
Span of control is the number of direct reports each manager supervises. Optimal span balances oversight quality (narrow span = better oversight) versus hierarchy depth (narrow span = more layers). Empirical research finds average 5-8 for knowledge work, 8-12 for operational work. Too narrow (<3) creates excessive hierarchy; too wide (>15) causes manager overload.