PLAY PODCASTS
How Many Direct Reports Should You Lead Effectively?
Season 5 · Episode 10

How Many Direct Reports Should You Lead Effectively?

When leaders try to manage too many people directly, clarity disappears and momentum suffers. In this episode, I break down the importance of span of control across public safety, healthcare IT, and project teams. Whether you're building a department,

People, Process, Progress: Leadership from Critical Care to the Boardroom

June 23, 202514m 26s

Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (media.blubrry.com) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.

Show Notes

When leaders try to manage too many people directly, clarity disappears and momentum suffers. In this episode, I break down the importance of span of control across public safety, healthcare IT, and project teams. Whether you're building a department, spinning up an incident team, or planning a go-live, the rule of 3 to 7 direct reports still holds. Five is the sweet spot—but there are exceptions.


We’ll walk through how ICS uses structure to maintain speed under pressure, how project teams should plan their structure during resource alignment, and why we must review roles and objectives regularly to stay on track. Whether you lead full-time staff or ad hoc teams, this episode is your blueprint for sustainable team design.


People first. Combined process. Progress together.