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Span of control refers to the number of individuals or resources that one supervisor can manage effectively during an incident. The optimal span of control is one supervisor to five subordinates (1:5). However, effective incident management may require ratios significantly different from this.
- ICS Principle: Manageable Span of Control
ICS Principle: Manageable Span of Control. “Span of control”...
- ICS Principle: Manageable Span of Control
For any supervisor, span of control: Should range from three and seven subordinates. Optimally does not exceed five subordinates. The ICS modular organization can be expanded or contracted to maintain an optimal span of control.
ICS Principle: Manageable Span of Control. “Span of control” refers to the number of individuals or resources that one supervisor can manage effectively during an incident. Experience has shown that an effective span of control for a supervisor in an incident is three to seven people.
Manageable Span of Control. NIMS 2008 states that “in ICS, the span of control of any individual with incident management supervisory responsibility should range from 3 to 7 subordinates, with 5 being optimal. During a large-scale law enforcement operation, 8 to 10 subordinates may be optimal.“.
The span of control refers to the number of individuals or resources that one supervisor can manage effectively during an incident. This concept is especially important for shaping the Operations Section organizational structure.
Maintaining an appropriate span of control helps ensure an effective and efficient incident management operation. It enables management to direct and supervise subordinates and to communicate with and manage all resources under their control. The type of incident, nature of the task, hazards and safety factors, experience of the
Effective span of control may vary from three (3) to seven (7), and a ratio of one (1) supervisor to five (5) reporting elements is recommended. If the number of reporting elements falls outside of this range, expansion or consolidation of the organization may be necessary.
