| Course | MBAX 6441 Human Resources Management and Strategic Planning |
|---|---|
| Week | Week 2 |
| Paper type | Job architecture memo |
| Length | About 810 words, 4 pages |
| Format | Memo, APA 7 citations |
| School | Walden University |
| Program | Master of Business Administration (MBA) |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MBAX 6441 Week 2
Memorandum
To: Vice President of Human Resources, Meridian Clinical Technologies
From: HR Analyst
Date: September 8, 2026
Re: Proposed job architecture for field, depot, operations and customer roles
The Problem, in Numbers
Meridian Clinical Technologies, the composite clinical equipment service company whose strategy depends on equipment uptime, has added levels one hire at a time. Today its 410 technical and service employees hold 23 different titles for what amount to about nine distinct roles. In a review of field technicians last month, 14 of 180 were found to be doing work at a level different from their grade: some graded as senior technicians who service only general patient-care equipment, and some graded as entry technicians who already handle complex anesthesia machines unsupervised. Two technicians in the Atlanta region perform the same work and are three grades apart, with a pay difference of about $11,000. This memo proposes a structure written down so that two managers would place the same job at the same level.
Families Defined by Work
Job families group roles that require similar knowledge and produce similar output, regardless of which department they report to. The proposal defines four, following the idea of Lepak and Snell (1999) that groups whose skills differ in value and uniqueness should be managed as distinct groups.
1. Field Service: biomedical equipment technicians and imaging service engineers who maintain and repair equipment at customer sites.
2. Depot Repair: technicians who repair modules and devices at Meridian's two repair centers.
3. Service Operations: dispatchers, parts coordinators and scheduling staff who route work and materials.
4. Customer Success: account managers who manage hospital contracts and uptime reporting.
Imaging engineers are placed within Field Service rather than in a family of their own, because their work differs from other field roles in complexity, not in kind; the level criteria capture that difference.
Criteria Applied Across Every Family
Five criteria separate one level from the next in every family. Using the same criteria lets Meridian say that a level 3 in Depot Repair is equivalent to a level 3 in Field Service, which is what the pay structure will need.
Table 1
Level Criteria, Illustrated for Field Service
| Criterion | Entry (level 1) | Independent (level 2) | Specialist (level 3) | Lead or imaging (level 4) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equipment complexity | General patient-care devices under supervision | General devices independently; some specialty devices | Specialty devices such as anesthesia and lab analyzers independently | Imaging systems such as CT and MRI, or lead on any category | |
| Autonomy | Work checked by a senior technician | Completes assigned work without review | Decides repair approach and when to escalate | Sets technical approach for a region or modality | |
| Customer exposure | Works under a senior's customer contact | Handles routine contact with clinical staff | Manages customer expectations on complex repairs | Represents Meridian to hospital leadership on technical issues | |
| Scope | Assigned tasks at one site | Own workload across several sites | A specialty across a region | A modality or region, including others' work | |
| Teaching | None expected | Shows new hires routine tasks | Trains level 1 and 2 technicians | Develops training and mentors level 3 staff | |
Composite organization. The same five criteria define levels in all four families, with family-specific examples.
Cells Describe Work, Not People
Each cell describes what the work requires, such as the decisions made without approval, the equipment handled and the customer contact expected, rather than qualities such as "highly motivated" or "strong communicator." Descriptions written as traits collapse at the first disagreement between managers. Armstrong and Taylor (2020) recommend that job evaluation focus on the demands of the role rather than the attributes of the person in it, since the role persists after the person moves on.
Anchor Roles That Already Exist
Each level is anchored to an existing role that managers agree is placed correctly. In Field Service, level 2 is anchored to the generalist technician servicing infusion pumps and monitors across several hospitals; level 4 is anchored to the senior CT engineer in the Charlotte region. New or disputed roles are placed by comparing them with these anchors on the five criteria.
Migration
Current employees will be mapped to the new levels by their managers, with HR reviewing every placement against the criteria and anchors. No one's pay will be reduced as a result of mapping; employees whose current pay exceeds the range for their new level will keep their pay, with future increases slowed until the range catches up. Employees placed at a higher level than their current grade will move to the new level's minimum within two pay cycles. Gerhart and Rynes (2003) note that employees judge pay systems heavily by the fairness of the process used to apply them, so each employee will receive a written explanation of their placement and a chance to ask for review.
Decision Needed
Approve the four families and five criteria, and authorize managers to begin mapping in October, with placements final by December 1.
References
Armstrong, M., & Taylor, S. (2020). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management practice (15th ed.). Kogan Page.
Gerhart, B., & Rynes, S. L. (2003). Compensation: Theory, evidence, and strategic implications. Sage.
Lepak, D. P., & Snell, S. A. (1999). The human resource architecture: Toward a theory of human capital allocation and development. Academy of Management Review, 24(1), 31-48. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1999.1580439
What the MBAX 6441 Week 2 instructions ask for
Week 2 asks you to propose a job architecture in memo form. Quantify the problem first, since a memo claiming inconsistent leveling must show it. Define job families by the work they produce, not by reporting lines. Choose a small set of criteria and apply the same ones to every family, so a level in one family is equivalent to the same level in another. Describe each level in terms of the work, decisions and resources involved, never personal traits. Anchor levels to existing roles that managers agree are placed correctly. Explain how current employees will be mapped and what happens to their pay. Two to three pages with one table usually suffices.
Inside the MBAX 6441 Week 2 example
The memo opens with title counts, misleveling and a pay gap example. A section defines four families and explains why imaging engineers sit within field service, citing Lepak and Snell. A section introduces five criteria, and a table illustrates them across four field service levels. A section explains why cells describe work rather than people, citing Armstrong and Taylor. A section names anchor roles at levels 2 and 4. The migration section explains mapping, pay protection and written explanations, citing Gerhart and Rynes on process fairness, and the memo closes with a decision request and dates. Every level description can be checked against an anchor role named in the text.
Where the marks sit in the MBAX 6441 Week 2 rubric
Job architecture memos are graded on rigor and usability. A quantified problem statement earns the first marks. Families should be defined by work content. The same criteria must run through every family; otherwise cross-family equivalence, which pay structures depend on, fails. Level descriptors should describe work and decisions, not traits such as initiative. Anchor roles make placement practical and are valued. A migration plan that protects current employees and explains placements shows awareness of fairness. Memo format, a clear table and a specific decision request complete the expectations. A grid copied from an organization chart misses the point of the week. A table readable without the prose is a mark of a well-built grid.
MBAX 6441 Week 2 help from the desk
Count the titles in one part of your organization and compare them with the distinct kinds of work people actually do; the gap is your problem statement. Group roles by what they produce and what knowledge they need, ignoring who they report to. Pick four or five criteria, such as complexity, autonomy and scope, and write each level's description in terms of decisions and work. Test the grid by placing three real jobs in it and asking whether two managers would agree. Name an anchor job for each level. Students often write descriptors full of adjectives that any manager could interpret differently. If you need help writing level descriptors, send us a job you are trying to place.
Get a MBAX 6441 Week 2 example written to your instructions
Send the week's memo instructions with their rubric, plus the organization named in the assignment and any level framework the classroom distributes. The finished architecture arrives with the grid, the criteria and a costed migration in 24 to 48 hours, the first one free. Families can be narrowed to whichever functions the prompt cares about.
More MBAX 6441 papers and MBA samples
- MBAX 6441 Week 1: Workforce Strategy Discussion Post
- MBAX 6441 Week 3: Headcount Forecast Paper
- MBAX 6441 Week 4: Hard-to-Fill Vacancy Case
- MBAX 6441 Week 5: Pay Structure Analysis Paper
- MBAX 6441 Week 6: Performance System Design
- MBAX 6441 Week 7: Turnover Cost Estimate
- MBAX 6441 Week 8: Critical Role Succession Plan
- MBAX 6441 Week 9: Discipline Case Analysis
- MBAX 6441 Week 10: Monthly HR Scorecard Paper
- MBAX 6441 Week 11: Final HR Strategy Defense
- MBAX 6431 Week 2: General Fund Revenue Analysis
- MBAX 6332 Week 2: Four-Layer Policy Scan
- MBAX 6007 Week 2: Causal Loop Diagram Paper
MBAX 6441 Week 2 questions, answered
Where can I find a free MBAX 6441 Week 2 sample paper?
The job architecture memo and its level criteria table are posted on this page at no cost.
What problem does the MBAX 6441 Week 2 memo quantify?
Twenty-three titles for about nine roles, 14 misleveled field staff and two technicians doing the same work three grades apart.
How are job families defined?
By the work they produce, field service, depot repair, service operations and customer success, not by reporting lines.
What criteria separate levels?
Equipment complexity, autonomy, customer exposure, scope and teaching, applied the same way in every family.
What happens to current pay during migration?
No pay is reduced; pay above a new range is held while future increases slow, and pay below moves to the minimum.