Experienced leaders typically manage 5-7 individuals effectively, but various factors such as leadership scope, additional roles, team experience, and organizational bureaucracy significantly influence this number. For instance, a Tech Lead or Engineering Manager's capacity to lead hinges not only on their own experience but also on the experience level of their team. Key points: - Core claim: An experienced leader can generally manage 5-7 people. - Factors affecting leadership capacity: - Leadership scope - Other leadership roles - Experience level of the leader - Experience level of the team - Level of organizational bureaucracy
This article is crucial for Engineering Leaders as it addresses the common challenge of determining an effective team size for leadership, which can directly impact team dynamics and productivity. An actionable takeaway is to aim for a leadership span of 5-7 people, adjusting based on the context and experience levels of both the leader and the team.
A common question I hear in my technical leadership workshops is, “How many people can someone (e.g. a Tech Lead or Engineering Manager) lead?”
What’s the magic number?
My answer is generally 5-7 people for an experienced leader, but many factors affect the final number. Some of these factors include their leadership scope, other leadership roles, the experience level of the leader, the experience level of the team, and the level of organisational bureaucracy.