
The company W. L. Gore and Associates, makers of Glide brand floss, adheres to an interesting group management model – that of 150. Each of their plants is limited to 150 workers. A Gore associate confirmed that the company is so purposeful in its long term planning that they build no more than one hundred and fifty parking spaces: “When people start parking on the grass, we know it’s time to build a new plant.” What is so special about 150? Bill Gore, the late founder of the company, said that things get “clumsy” at 150. By “clumsy”, Gore is referring to the inefficiency in productivity that correlates with inefficient human relations on the job.