| Course | MBAX 6990 Capstone: Sustainable Business Practice and Strategies |
|---|---|
| Week | Week 2 |
| Paper type | Company selection memo |
| Length | About 670 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 6990 Week 2
Memorandum
To: Course Instructor, MBAX 6990
From: Capstone Student
Date: September 21, 2026
Re: Selection of the capstone company
Decision
I have selected a composite regional craft brewery, Quarry Hill Brewing in western Massachusetts, as my capstone company. It passed all four of the tests below; the two alternatives each failed at least one. The rest of this memo shows how each candidate fared.
Four Tests
The capstone requires a financial, an environmental and a social case for one decision, each built on evidence a reader could check. That requirement gives four tests. First, published evidence: are there industry data, studies or public records that can anchor the numbers, even for a composite company? Second, a live decision with money attached: does the company face a real choice with capital at stake, not just a general aspiration? Third, identifiable social effects: can the decision's effects on workers, customers or a community be named? Fourth, a scale one author can cover in a term.
Table 1
Candidates Against the Four Tests
| Test | Composite craft brewery | Composite apparel brand | Composite commercial laundry | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Published evidence | Yes: industry water benchmarks, packaging life cycle studies, state container deposit laws | Partly: supply chain studies exist, but factory-level data are hard to pin down | Yes: water and energy benchmarks for industrial laundries | |
| Live decision with money | Yes: rinse-water recovery and returnable bottles, both priced | Weak: a general pledge on sourcing, no specific capital decision | Yes: a tunnel washer replacement | |
| Identifiable social effects | Yes: distributor and retailer workload for returns, brewery jobs, local water use | Yes, but abroad and hard to verify | Weak: effects mostly inside the plant | |
| Scale one author can cover | Yes: one site, three states | No: dozens of overseas suppliers | Yes: one plant | |
Composite candidates; assessments by the author.
Where the Apparel Brand Fell
The apparel brand had the richest social questions, about wages and conditions in its suppliers' factories, but failed two tests. Its only sustainability decision was a broad sourcing pledge with no capital attached, and its supply chain spans dozens of overseas factories, far too many for one author to examine with any care. A capstone built on it would have described problems rather than analyzed a decision.
Where the Laundry Fell
The commercial laundry had a clean, priced decision, replacing old washers with a water-saving tunnel system, and good published benchmarks. It failed on social effects: the change would mostly affect energy and water bills, with few identifiable effects on people beyond the plant's own workers, whose jobs would not change much. The social case would have been thin.
Why the Brewery Passed
The brewery offers two priced decisions that interact, one preventing waste at the source and one extending responsibility for the product, the two strategies Hart (1995) distinguished; a bottle washer would draw on the water a reuse project tries to save. Published evidence exists for each part: industry water use benchmarks, life cycle studies of glass packaging that show reuse matters (Amienyo et al., 2013) and the container deposit laws of two of its three states. Its social effects are identifiable, from the extra work returns would place on distributors and retailers to the brewery's role as a local employer and water user. And one site in three states is a manageable scope. Elkington (1997) defined sustainable business as performing on economic, environmental and social lines at once, and this company lets all three be tested on one decision.
Risks of the Choice
The brewery has one weakness as a capstone subject. Because it is a composite, its own figures, such as water use per barrel and bottle return rates, must be illustrative, built from published industry ranges rather than company records. Every such figure will be labeled, and the analysis will test whether its conclusions hold across the plausible range, so a reader can confirm that no single convenient number carries the recommendation.
Request
Please approve the brewery as my capstone company so I can begin the situation analysis next week.
References
Amienyo, D., Gujba, H., Stichnothe, H., & Azapagic, A. (2013). Life cycle environmental impacts of carbonated soft drinks. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 18(1), 77-92. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-012-0459-y
Elkington, J. (1997). Cannibals with forks: The triple bottom line of 21st century business. Capstone.
Hart, S. L. (1995). A natural-resource-based view of the firm. Academy of Management Review, 20(4), 986-1014. https://doi.org/10.2307/258963
What the MBAX 6990 Week 2 instructions ask for
Week 2 asks you to justify your capstone company in a memo to your instructor. State the decision first. Set out the tests that matter for a capstone requiring financial, environmental and social cases, and apply them to two or three candidates in a single grid. Explain where each rejected candidate failed, in a sentence or two. Show why the chosen company passes, naming the evidence available for each part of the analysis. Acknowledge any weakness in your choice and how you will manage it. Close with the approval you need. Two pages in memo form with one grid usually suffices. Explain why each test matters for this particular capstone.
Inside the MBAX 6990 Week 2 example
The decision section names the brewery. A section explains four tests derived from the capstone's requirements. A grid compares the three candidates on each test. Short sections explain why the apparel brand and the laundry failed. A section explains why the brewery passed, citing Hart and Amienyo and colleagues, and links the choice to Elkington's three lines. A risks section explains how illustrative figures will be labeled and tested across ranges. The memo closes with a request for approval. The grid places candidates in columns so each test can be read across all three. Every claim about available evidence names its type, such as industry benchmarks or state laws.
Reading the MBAX 6990 Week 2 rubric
Selection memos earn credit for criteria that follow from the assignment and for honest comparison. Tests tied to the capstone's requirements show understanding of what the project needs. One grid holding every candidate against every test keeps the comparison honest. Each rejection should name the specific test failed. The case for the chosen company should point to available evidence, not enthusiasm. Acknowledging the choice's weakness, such as reliance on illustrative figures, is a mark of maturity. Memo format with the decision first and a clear request is expected. Memos that describe only the chosen company earn fewer marks. A grid readable without the prose is a strength.
Common MBAX 6990 Week 2 mistakes, and how to avoid them
List what your capstone must do and turn each requirement into a yes-or-no test. Then score two or three companies you are considering against every test, writing a sentence for each. Choose the one that passes most clearly, and be ready to say exactly where the others fell short. Note the weakest part of your choice and how you will handle it. Put the decision in the subject line so your instructor sees it first. Students often justify a favorite company without comparing it to anything. If you are torn between candidates, describe them to us. Score every candidate on every test, even the obvious ones. Keep each rejection to a sentence or two.
Get a MBAX 6990 Week 2 example written to your instructions
Forward the Week 2 memo instructions and rubric, plus the companies on your shortlist. A memo that settles the choice in its subject line, tests each candidate in sentences against stated criteria, and names the public sources that will fill any reporting gap arrives within 24 to 48 hours; your first is free. All three candidate firms in the sample are fictional.
More MBAX 6990 papers and MBA samples
- MBAX 6990 Week 1: Capstone Scoping Post
- MBAX 6990 Week 3: Capstone Situation Analysis
- MBAX 6990 Week 4: Sustainability Claims Audit
- MBAX 6990 Week 5: Sustainability Strategy Options
- MBAX 6990 Week 6: Strategy Claims Discussion Post
- MBAX 6990 Week 7: Capstone Financial Section
- MBAX 6990 Week 8: Staged Implementation Plan
- MBAX 6990 Week 9: Capstone Integration Draft
- MBAX 6990 Week 10: Capstone Peer Review Reply
- MBAX 6990 Week 11: Final Sustainability Capstone
- WMBA 6000 Week 2: Founder Transparency Memo
- MBAX 6850 Week 2: Nonprofit Organizational Profile
- WMBA 6010 Week 2: Motivation Diagnosis
- WMBA 6020 Week 2: Culture Model Assessment
MBAX 6990 Week 2 questions, answered
Where can I find a free MBAX 6990 Week 2 sample paper?
The company selection memo and its four-test grid are free to read on this page.
Which company does the MBAX 6990 Week 2 memo select?
A composite regional craft brewery in western Massachusetts.
What are the four tests?
Published evidence, a live decision with money attached, identifiable social effects and a scale one author can cover.
Why was the apparel brand rejected?
It had only a general sourcing pledge, no priced decision, and a supply chain too large for one author.
What weakness does the memo admit?
As a composite, the brewery's figures must be illustrative, so they will be labeled and tested across published ranges.