While almost every financial professional will tell you to diversify your portfolio, both investment and service or goods offerings, there are times where this can lead to higher Administration and Management costs in both for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. Most of us have heard the term ‘Span of Control’ being how many staff one person can effectively manage, a common quote being 5-7. This topic has such a high ‘It Depends’ factor, in my opinion this ratio is only valid for introducing the concept. Let’s consider a few examples. One program with 100 delivery officers may require one Manager and 7 assistant managers as Span of Control can be stretched from the commonly quoted 1:5-7 ratio to 1:15 if all persons are performing similar tasks requiring similar qualifications. Contrast this to an organization with 100 employees, 6 major areas, and multiple programs with distinctively different occupations and skill requirements. For example, an Assistant Warden Management Se...