| Course | PUBH 6600 Leadership and Professional Practice in Public Health |
|---|---|
| Week | Week 2 |
| Paper type | Role analysis brief |
| Length | About 670 words, 5 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Walden University |
| Program | Master of Public Health (MPH) |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for PUBH 6600 Week 2
Who Signs the Timesheet and Who Closes the Beach: A Role Analysis Mapping the Formal Line and the Working Lines Around a County Harmful Algal Bloom Program Manager
Student Name
Walden University
PUBH 6600: Leadership and Professional Practice in Public Health
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Who Signs the Timesheet and Who Closes the Beach: A Role Analysis Mapping the Formal Line and the Working Lines Around a County Harmful Algal Bloom Program Manager
The Chart and the Work
On Kestrel County's organization chart, the recreational water program manager reports to the deputy director for environmental health, who reports to the health director. That line settles who approves her leave, writes her evaluation and signs her budget requests. It settles very little about how a toxin advisory reaches a swimming beach. During a cyanobacteria bloom on Mallard Lake, the samples go to the state laboratory, which she does not direct; the advisory signs at county beaches are posted by the parks department, which she does not direct; the press release goes through the county communications office, which she does not direct; and the money for weekly sampling comes from a state beach grant administered by a state program officer. Her role is defined less by the box she sits in than by the lines she has to work along.
The Formal Line
The formal line gives the manager three real powers: she sets the sampling schedule, interprets results against the advisory values her department has adopted and recommends advisories to her deputy. Under the department's policy, the deputy approves an advisory, and the health director must approve a beach closure. The formal line also gives her a duty: to tell her supervisor promptly and accurately what the data show.
The Working Lines
Each working line runs on influence rather than authority. Koh and Jacobson (2009) describe public health leadership as the ability to move people and organizations that one does not command, often across agencies and sectors, and this role demands exactly that. The manager cannot order parks staff to post a sign, but a parks supervisor who trusts her data and has received clear maps before will post it within hours.
Table 1
Working Relationships Around One Advisory
| Partner | What the manager needs | What she controls | What she relies on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| State laboratory | Toxin results within 48 hours | Sample delivery and labeling | Laboratory priorities and courier schedule | |
| Parks department | Signs posted the same day | Accurate maps and wording | Parks staff time and willingness | |
| Communications office | A public notice the same day | Draft text and data | Their review queue and judgment | |
| State beach program | Continued grant funding | Timely, complete reports | The program officer's discretion | |
| Lakeside businesses | Cooperation with posted advisories | Clear explanation | Their interest in staying open | |
Note. Relationships described for this composite county.
Where the Lines Conflict
The lines pull in different directions in predictable places. The communications office wants consistent messages and may hold a notice for review; the manager wants speed during a bloom. The state program wants complete reports; the parks department wants beaches open. The lakeside resort wants advisories confined to the smallest possible area. The formal line gives the manager no authority to resolve these conflicts herself. What she can do is raise them early with her deputy, which matters because employees often stay silent about problems when they doubt that speaking up will be welcome or useful (Morrison, 2014).
What the Role Requires
Three capacities follow from this analysis. First, technical credibility: partners act on her word because her data have been right before. Second, relationship maintenance: she meets the parks supervisor and laboratory contact before the season, not during the first bloom. Third, disciplined escalation: when a working line fails and harm is likely, she takes it up the formal line rather than working around it. Among the competencies the Council on Linkages sets for the field are partnering across sectors and speaking to varied audiences (Council on Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice, 2021), and this role tests both every summer.
What the Analysis Changes
Seeing the role this way changes how the manager spends her spring. Instead of treating partner meetings as courtesy, she treats them as the main work that makes the formal powers usable when a bloom arrives.
References
Council on Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice. (2021). Core competencies for public health professionals. Public Health Foundation. https://www.phf.org/programs/corecompetencies/
Koh, H. K., & Jacobson, M. (2009). Fostering public health leadership. Journal of Public Health, 31(2), 199-201. https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdp032
Morrison, E. W. (2014). Employee voice and silence. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1, 173-197. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091328
The Walden PUBH 6600 Week 2 instructions
Role analysis assignments ask students to examine a public health position, often their own or one they aspire to, in terms of authority, accountability and relationships. Prompts usually require the formal reporting line, the role's actual working relationships, sources of influence, points of conflict and the competencies the role demands, often supported by leadership literature or competency frameworks. Two or three pages with one relationship table is a common shape. Instructors look for analyses that go beyond the organization chart to show how work actually gets done, and that connect the analysis to what the person in the role should do differently as a result.
Inside the PUBH 6600 Week 2 example
The brief opens by contrasting the organization chart with the path one advisory takes through five partners. A short section describes the formal line's powers and duties. A table lists working relationships with what the manager needs, controls and relies on. A section uses leadership literature to describe these relationships as influence rather than authority. Another identifies predictable conflicts between partners and links early escalation to research on silence. Three capacities follow, connected to competency standards, and a final section shows how the analysis changes the manager's spring schedule. The table is organized so a reader can compare partners on the same three questions. Its last section shows how the manager's spring calendar changes as a result.
PUBH 6600 Week 2 rubric: what earns full marks
Role analyses are graded on accuracy, depth and application. Accuracy means formal authority is described correctly. Depth comes from mapping working relationships and showing where formal and informal authority diverge. Application is shown by drawing practical conclusions about how the person should work. Use of leadership or competency sources earns credit when tied to specific features of the role. The leadership sources should be cited exactly. Analyses that describe only the organization chart lose most of the depth credit. Analyses that predict where partners' goals will collide, and say what the role holder should do about it, show the most insight. Graders also value recognition that a working relationship built before a crisis is what makes formal powers usable during one. A clear statement of what the analysis changes in practice usually separates strong submissions from descriptive ones.
PUBH 6600 Week 2 help from the desk
A common weakness is describing a job description instead of the role in practice. Follow one task from start to finish and list everyone involved. For each, ask what you need and what you can actually control. Look for places where partners' goals conflict. Tie the analysis to a competency framework or leadership source, and close by naming a change in your own practice. A role analysis of your own position can be written to your instructor's prompt. Ask a colleague in a partner agency how they see your role; their answer often reveals working lines the chart hides. Keep the table to the partners who matter most for one task.
Get a PUBH 6600 Week 2 example written to your instructions
Share the Week 2 prompt and rubric, and describe the position to be analyzed, whether your own or one your section supplies; the analysis arrives with both diagrams drawn and a relationship table, in 24 to 48 hours, the first one free. A course reading on power or role theory replaces French and Raven wherever the prompt names one.
More PUBH 6600 papers and MPH samples
- PUBH 6600 Week 1: Discussion Post
- PUBH 6600 Week 3: Practice Memo
- PUBH 6600 Week 4: Escalation Memo
- PUBH 6600 Week 5: Stakeholder Briefing
- PUBH 6600 Week 6: Scope-of-Practice Note
- PUBH 6600 Week 7: Peer Critique
- PUBH 6600 Week 8: Decision Record
- PUBH 6600 Week 9: Supervision Plan
- PUBH 6600 Week 10: Interest Disclosure
- PUBH 6600 Week 11: Practice Standards
- PUBH 6641 Week 2: Setting Profile
- PUBH 6333 Week 2: Audience Analysis
- HLTH 6005 Week 2: Role Comparison Paper
- PUBH 6331 Week 2: Burden Profile
PUBH 6600 Week 2 questions, answered
Where can I find a free PUBH 6600 Week 2 sample paper?
You can read the Week 2 role analysis above in full, mapping formal and working authority around a lake advisory program manager.
What is the difference between formal and working authority?
Formal authority comes from the reporting line; working authority depends on influence with partners the person does not direct.
Why does a program manager need influence rather than authority?
Key steps, such as testing samples and posting signs, are done by other agencies she cannot command.
What capacities does this role require?
Technical credibility, relationship maintenance with partners and disciplined escalation when a working line fails.
How does the analysis change the manager's work?
She treats spring meetings with partners as essential preparation rather than courtesy.