Which one of the following factors is not a factor in case of wide span of management?

The correct answer is Fast changes in external and internal environment.

Span of management:

• Depending upon the complexity of organizational activities and relationships amongst superiors and subordinates, it becomes important the superiors manage an optimum number of subordinates that result in optimum organizational output.
• All the subordinates cannot be managed by one superior.
• There has to be a limit on the number of subordinates who can be effectively managed by one superior.
• The number of subordinates that a superior can effectively supervise is known as the span of management or the span of control.

Key Points There are a number of factors that influence or determine the span of supervision in a particular organization, the most important of these are as follows:

• Competence and Training of Subordinates: Subordinates who are skilled, efficient, knowledgeable, trained, and competent require less supervision, and therefore, the supervisor may have a wider span in such cases as compared to inexperienced and untrained subordinates who require greater supervision.
• Nature of Work: The nature and importance of work to be supervised is another factor that influences the span of supervision. The work involving routine, repetitive, unskilled, and standardized operations will not call much attention and time on the part of the supervisor. As such, the supervisors at the lower levels of the organization can supervise the work of a large number of subordinates. On the other hand, at higher levels of management, the work involves complex and a variety of Jobs and as such, the number of subordinates that can be effectively managed should be limited to a lesser number.
• Dynamism or Rate of Change: Certain enterprises change much more rapidly than others. This rate of change determines the stability of policies and practices of an organization. The span of control tends to be narrow where the policies and practices do not remain stable.
• Effectiveness of Communication System: The span of supervision is also influenced by the effectiveness of the communication system in the organization. Faulty communication puts a heavy burden on managers’ time and reduces the span of control. On the other hand, if the system of communication is effective, a larger number of managerial levels will be preferred as the information can be transmitted easily. Further, a wide span is possible if a manager can communicate effectively.

Important Points

•  Thus, Fast changes in external and internal environments require a narrow span of management. 
• Well-defined plans for repetitive operations, Effective interaction between superior and subordinate, and Thorough training of subordinates require a wide span of management. 

Hence, Fast changes in the external and internal environment is not a factor in the case of a wide span of management.