Which statement best describes the relationship between span of control and supervision load?

• A. A larger span of control can increase supervision load and risk of overload
• B. A larger span of control always reduces supervision work
• C. Span of control has no impact on supervision during incidents
• D. Increasing span of control guarantees faster incident resolution.

Answer: (A)

Span of control is the number of individuals or units a single supervisor can effectively oversee during an incident. When that number increases, the supervisor must coordinate more assignments, monitor more safety and accountability issues, and handle more communications and status updates. This extra workload raises the risk of overload and can reduce the supervisor’s ability to provide timely guidance, potentially slowing decision making and affecting safety. So, the statement that best describes the relationship is that a larger span of control can increase supervision load and risk of overload.

The other ideas don’t fit because a larger span of control does not automatically reduce supervision work; it typically adds to it. It also clearly impacts supervision during incidents, not leaves it unchanged. And increasing span does not guarantee faster incident resolution; overload can actually hinder faster, effective action.