Test 13 · Managers of managers

Span Check

Span isn’t a number on an org chart. It’s how much of you each person gets.

LiveCalculator

Use the calculator

The short answer

Span Check is a free calculator for how much of you each direct report gets. Enter your direct reports, how many are new in role, the weekly hours you can give to people, and your 1:1 length and rhythm. You get hours per report per week, a span score out of 100, and what would close any gap.

Drafted with AI for Jay Sampat, Chief Mirror Holder · coach review pending

Who it’s for
Managers of managers whose calendar no longer has room for everyone who reports to them.
What you get
Hours per report per week, a span score out of 100, and three ways to close the gap: more hours, fewer reports or shorter 1:1s.

The calculator

Whether your span of control is healthy

Your team

In the role, or reporting to you, for under six months.

hours

1:1s, coaching, unblocking. Not meetings about work.

What each person needs
minutes
min a week

Questions, reviews, unblocking. Your own estimate.

%

An assumption, not a benchmark. Put in your own.

Your span

Per report, per week
1 h
of the 8 hours you can give
Span score
71
out of 100: Stretched
Time they need
11.3 h
a week, by your numbers; 1:1s alone take 6 h

What it would take to fix. Any one of these closes the gap:

  • Find 3.3 more hours a week for your people.
  • Bring your direct reports down to 5, for example by putting a lead between you and part of the team.
  • Keep the rhythm but shorten 1:1s to about 20 minutes, if the time between them stays the same.
Runs in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere or saved.

The week every one of your managers needed you on the same afternoon.

Try a question now

In one-on-ones, the other person does most of the talking.

A question from The 42 Test that touches this topic.

Span Check

Why check your span of control?

Because span isn’t a number on an org chart, it’s how much of you each person gets. Eight reports can be fine with plenty of hours and an experienced team, and too many when half of them are new and your week is full of other things. The question is whether the time you have matches the time they need.

Use the calculator: it takes about two minutes and uses only your own numbers.

How does the calculator work it out?

  1. Time each person needs a week is their 1:1 time (length × how often it happens: weekly counts as 1, every two weeks as ½, monthly as 12 ÷ 52) plus the time you give them between 1:1s.
  2. Someone new in role needs an extra share of that time. The starting value, 50%, is an assumption, not a benchmark; put in your own.
  3. Time your team needs is that per-person time for everyone, plus the extra for new people.
  4. Hours per report is the hours you can give to people, divided by your direct reports.
  5. Span score is the time you have ÷ the time they need, as a percentage, capped at 100.
  6. What it would take to fix shows three separate ways to close any gap: the extra hours you’d need, the number of direct reports your hours cover, and the 1:1 length that would fit.

There’s no outside benchmark in the sum. It’s your own maths, made visible.

What should I do with the result?

If you’re stretched, pick one of the three fixes and try it for a month. Putting a lead between you and part of the team is often the most durable one. Read how many direct reports is too many for the wider picture, check what waiting on you costs with Decision Debt, and see whether your managers grow around you with Amplifier or Bottleneck. Every tool for this stage is on the Managers of managers page.

Drafted with AI · coach review pending

Questions people ask

How many direct reports should a manager have?
There’s no single right number. It depends on how new your people are, how much of your week you can give them and how often you meet. Span Check uses your own numbers to show whether your current span fits the time you actually have.
What does the span score mean?
It’s the time you can give your people divided by the time they need, by your own estimates, capped at 100. 90 or more reads as room to lead, 60 to 89 as stretched, below 60 as spread too thin.
Where do the assumptions come from?
From you. The time between 1:1s and the extra time someone new in role needs are your own estimates; the starting values are examples, not benchmarks. Change them to match your team.
Is anything I type saved or sent?
No. The calculator runs in your browser. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere, and the page forgets everything when you close it.

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Drafted with AI · coach review pending