#IntellectualPropertyRights
Radio Silence from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons on Report of Blatant Plagiarism in Their ‘Journal of Neurosurgery’ Publication
08 October 2024
BY SCOTT M. GRAFFIUS | ScottGraffius.com


If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

Introduction
Plagiarism, defined as ‘to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own: use (another's production) without crediting the source’ (source: Merriam-Webster), damages trust, credibility, and the value of original content. The theft of intellectual property distorts the scholarly record and results in misinformation. It often violates copyright as well.
Publications must respond decisively to plagiarism reports by swiftly acknowledging complaints, conducting thorough investigations, and taking appropriate actions such as retractions.

Quiz Question
The visual at the top of this article depicts a quiz related to a real situation. Here's the question:
You discovered blatant plagiarism in a Journal of Neurosurgery publication of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. You reported it—with detailed specifics and indisputable evidence—to the authors, the editors, and the publisher. What should happen next (within five business days)?
🔘 A. The publisher or one or more of the authors or editors replies with, “Thank you for alerting us about the violation; we’re looking into it.”
🔘 B. The publisher or one or more of the authors or editors challenges you to a duel to defend their honor.
🔘 C. Neither the publisher nor any of the authors or editors responds. Radio silence.

Quiz Answer
The question is about what should happen. For that reason, the correct answer about what should happen is: 'A. The publisher or one or more of the authors or editors replies with, "Thank you for alerting us about the violation; we're looking into it."
When publications receive a report of plagiarism, they should promptly acknowledge receipt of the report by responding within no longer than five business days. This action demonstrates transparency, professionalism, and a commitment to maintaining the integrity of the academic record. Conversely, not expeditiously acknowledging receipt of the report conveys a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, and a lack of commitment to integrity.

Radio Silence by the Publisher, the Editors, and the Authors
It would be nice if the quiz above was just a hypothetical/thought experiment. Unfortunately, it's related to the real situation where Scott M. Graffius discovered blatant plagiarism in a Journal of Neurosurgery publication of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and notified the authors, the editors, and the publisher of the violation on 24 September 2024.
As mentioned earlier, publishers should promptly acknowledge receipt of plagiarism reports by responding within no longer than five business days. As of the date of this article (8 October 2024), 10 business days (14 calendar days) have elapsed since the violation was reported. And the publisher, the editors, and the authors maintain radio silence.
Plagiarism is bad. By not acknowledging receipt of the report, the publisher, the editors, and the authors made the bad situation worst. And the publisher (JNS Publishing Group / American Association of Neurological Surgeons) has not yet taken action such as retraction or removal of the infringing material.

It is imperative that the publisher demonstrate—through their actions—a commitment to upholding the highest standards of ethics and intellectual property rights. The publisher must take immediate and decisive action such as retracting or removing the infringing content. Otherwise, the publisher is knowingly endorsing, permitting or otherwise allowing ongoing misinformation and the perpetual violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
Details follow. If there's an update on this consequential matter after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.


Details on the Plagiarism
On 24 September 2024, Scott M. Graffius observed plagiarism in a Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) publication of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. That same day, Graffius wrote to the publisher, the editors, and the authors of the violating material. His email was titled, 'JNS paper plagiarized and damaged the marketability and value of Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted property.' It contained detailed specifics and indisputable evidence. Saved as a PDF, Graffius' email is 19 pages.
As a high-level overview, thumbnails of the 19-page email are shown below. Then, select 'readable' excerpts are provided.

Excerpts from Graffius' 19-page email follow. They're shown in italic font.
Here's an excerpt from the introduction section of Graffius' email.
Authors of a Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) paper plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property, constituting a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights. Here are the specifics on the publication.
Here's an excerpt from the section of the email with background information.
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman, Ph.D. and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius’ first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development.’ It’s a unique perspective on the five phases of team development — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning — and it’s inclusive of the characteristics/features/traits and strategies for each phase.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
The integrated text from Graffius’ copyrighted property applies in this case.
Graffius initially developed his intellectual property in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it. An authorized example of his copyrighted property applicable in this case (2022 edition) is here: https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/teams- 2022.html .
Here's more from the section of the email with background information.
Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: “Copyright © 2008-2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.”
Additionally, his respective article includes this: “To request permission to use the 'Phases of Team Development' visual, contact Scott M. Graffius. If approved, high resolution JPG and PNG image files will be provided, subject to terms and conditions.”
And also this: “© Copyright 2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.”
Conference organizers, businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. To date, he’s presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries, including:
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is central and key to many of those sessions. His rate card and a listing of his engagements are at https://scottgraffius.com/resources/Exceptional-PPM-and-PMO-Solutions- Rate-Card-for-2024-2025-v24071607.pdf and https://scottgraffius.com/publicspeaker.html, respectively.
With an authorization/license from Graffius, many organizations around the world have featured and used his copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ work. Select examples include:
The following excerpts are from the section of the email detailing the violation.
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are clearly noted.
Authors (Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C) of the JNS paper ('Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery') did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, the authors used Graffius’ copyrighted property in their JNS article: they plagiarized Graffius’ work, damaging the marketability and value of his intellectual property.
The following excerpts from the email provide some side-by-side examples of Graffius' copyrighted property and the plagiarism in the JNS publication.
The exhibit below also shows some examples of the blatant plagiarism.

The following excerpts are from the conclusion section of Graffius' email.
Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: “Copyright © 2008-2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.” Additionally, his article includes this: “To request permission to use the 'Phases of Team Development' visual, contact Scott M. Graffius. If approved, high resolution JPG and PNG image files will be provided, subject to terms and conditions.” And also this: “© Copyright 2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.”
Authors (Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C) of the JNS paper (Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery) did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
The authors of the JNS paper used Graffius’ copyrighted property, including plagiarizing it. The JNS paper did not attribute material to Graffius through citation or otherwise. By doing so, the authors are wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they are the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted content.
The JNS authors’ plagiarism damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
The aforementioned actions of the authors of the JNS paper are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
The following excerpt is also from the conclusion section of Graffius' email.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. He is consulting with an IP attorney in Los Angeles. Graffius reserves his rights in this disturbing and consequential matter.
The preceding provided excerpts of key content—not the full transcript—of Graffius' email.
Authors of the Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) paper blatantly plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property, constituting a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
It is shocking that neither the publisher nor any of the editors or authors have responded to Graffius' report on the violation. By not acknowledging receipt of the plagiarism report, the publisher signals a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, and a lack of commitment to integrity.
It is imperative that the publisher, JNS Publishing Group / the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, demonstrate—through their actions—a commitment to upholding the highest standards of ethics and intellectual property rights. The publisher must take immediate and decisive action such as retracting or removing the infringing content. Otherwise, they risk losing their credibility and the trust placed in them by scientific and academic communities.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
Read on to learn:

About the Journal of Neurosurgery
The Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of neurosurgery. It is published by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the editor-in-chief is James Rutka. The JNS brands itself as the world’s leading journal on neurosurgery and the official journal of the AANS.
Visit the JNS website to learn more.
Note: Scott M. Graffius included (among others) James Rutka, AANS Editor-in-Chief, on the 24 September 2024 email detailing the plagiarism violation.

About the American Association of Neurological Surgeons
The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is dedicated to advancing neurological surgery. The AANS says that through rigorous education, groundbreaking research, robust advocacy, and the advancement of outcomes science, it strives to ensure the highest standards of patient care are met and exceeded. Katie O. Orrico is Chief Executive Officer of the AANS.
Visit the AANS website to learn more.
Note: Scott M. Graffius included (among others) Katie O. Orrico, AANS CEO, on the 24 September 2024 email detailing the plagiarism violation.

About Scott M. Graffius

Scott M. Graffius is a global leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, an authority on temporal dynamics on social media platforms, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author, and an international public speaker.
He's generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he's served — as a consultant through Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions and Exceptional Agility, and as a member of staff at organizations. Businesses and industries range from consumer products to advanced technology (including AI, R&D), e-commerce, music, streaming/OTT video, television, film, video games, financial services, government, and more.
Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum and Agile Transformation), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities around the world. Examples include Adobe, American Management Association, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Bayer, Boston University, Broadcom, Cisco, Deimos Aerospace, DevOps Institute, EU's European Commission, Ford Motor Company, Hasso Plattner Institute Germany, IEEE, Johns Hopkins University, London South Bank University, Microsoft, National Academy of Sciences, New Zealand Government, Oracle, Project Management Institute, Torrens University Australia, UC San Diego, TBS Switzerland, UK Sports Institute, University of Galway Ireland, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. National Park Service, U.S. Tennis Association, Virginia Tech, Warsaw University of Technology, Yale University, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, and many others.
He delights audiences around the world with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops. He's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit here to learn more and here to ask Scott to speak at your event.



About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions

Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.

About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change

Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.


References/Sources
The following is a list of material on publishing standards and procedures. Some cover the reporting and handling of plagiarism.


How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, October 8). Radio Silence from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons on Report of Blatant Plagiarism in Their ‘Journal of Neurosurgery’ Publication. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/aans-jns-publication.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.25837.40160


Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Update on 11 October 2024
As a recap, Graffius’ 24 September 2024 report provided indisputable proof of plagiarism. Graffius emailed the detailed report to the publisher, the editors, and the authors. However, weeks passed with radio silence. There was not even an acknowledgement of receipt of the report.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. The publisher’s non-response signaled that they were knowingly endorsing, permitting or otherwise allowing ongoing misinformation and the perpetual violation of Graffius' intellectual property. For those reasons, Graffius expanded communications on this consequential matter. Here's one example (of many).
On 11 October 2024, the publisher sent their first response to Graffius. Here’s an excerpt from the publisher’s email (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
“Thank you for your email and your patience as we have looked into this matter. We have concluded our investigation. The author did indeed unintentionally include unattributed references to your work. An erratum and article correction by the author are in process. Once submitted to us, time to publication is usually 2-3 weeks. I would expect this process to be concluded in less than 4 weeks’ time. I will send you a link to the errata and corrected paper for your files once they have been published online.”
Again, the above is an excerpt from—not a full transcript of—the publisher’s email to Graffius.
The publisher used the term “unintentionally.” That term, whether referencing a ridiculous excuse of the plagiarizing authors or otherwise, is counter-indicated by the undeniable facts in this serious matter and should not be used. For that reason, Graffius responded to the publisher’s email the same day. Here’s an excerpt from Graffius’ email (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
“Your response warrants a reply. So here it is.
I will not re-state my full 24 September 2024* report of the indisputable facts. But here’s an excerpt:
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “High motivation, trust, and empathy”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “High motivation, trust, and empathy”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Individuals defer to team needs”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Individuals defer to team needs”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Consistent performance”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Consistent performance”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Purpose and goals are well-understood”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Purpose and goals are well-understood”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “More confident”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “More confidence”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Members are engaged and supportive”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Members are engaged and supportive”
My copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on my copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. Specifically, it reads: ‘Copyright © 2008-2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.’ Additionally, my corresponding publication includes this: ‘© Copyright 2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.’
Authors (Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C) of the JNS paper ('Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery') did not request nor receive permission to use my copyrighted property.
Plagiarism is defined as ‘to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own: use (another's production) without crediting the source’ (source: Merriam-Webster). It infringes on the intellectual property rights of others, results in misinformation, and often violates copyright.
The authors of the JNS paper used my copyrighted property, including plagiarizing it. Most of their plagiarism was word-for-word use of my intellectual property.
The JNS paper did not attribute material to me through citation or otherwise. By doing so, the authors are wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they are the author and owner of my respective copyrighted content.
So, these author(s)—who have been proven to be plagiarizers—claim the violation was done “unintentionally”? They unintentionally took my copyrighted property and used it (mostly word-for-word) unintentionally, and unintentionally failed to credit me on their respective diagram, and also unintentionally failed to cite me in the references section of the paper? The authors are insulting others with their excuse. “Unintentionally” is a ridiculous and desperate attempt to ‘minimize’ or ‘spin’ their blatant violation. I reject it entirely and so should you.
Wouldn’t it be refreshing to see the proven plagiarizers take a nice turn and demonstrate integrity, sincerity, and remorse?! They could have, and should have, simply said that what they did was wrong. However, by asserting “unintentionally,” the authors are demonstrating an ongoing lack of integrity, sincerity, and remorse. I must say, I’m greatly concerned.
Maybe the authors are procedurally allowed to (falsely) claim whatever they want, including “unintentionally,” in their response to the charges. However, if “unintentionally” (or a similar term) appears in the official record—whether in an erratum, retraction, or other action—it must be noted that “unintentionally” (or a similar term) is the claim of the authors of the JNS paper. It is vital that the that it is made clear that “unintentionally” (or a similar operative term) is not the conclusion or position of others. Here, 'others' includes me. Given the facts and without bias, ‘others’ certainty also includes you, the Journal of Neurosurgery, JNS Publishing Group, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and others.
Plagiarism is a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and intellectual property rights. The authors of the JNS paper damaged the marketability and value of my copyrighted property.
I maintain, enforce, and protect my copyright and other intellectual property rights. As mentioned earlier, I am consulting with an IP attorney in Los Angeles. I reserve my rights in this disturbing and consequential matter.
Given the serious nature of this issue, please reply with a short confirmation that you received this communication.”
Again, the above is an excerpt from—not a full transcript of—Graffius’ email to the publisher.
The publisher replied the same day with (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
“That word was solely mine, and not a reflection of what will be conveyed. You are correct that it is irrelevant to the discussion. Apologies for the miscommunication. Please be assured we do not take this situation lightly. Acknowledging receipt of your correspondence with this email. I will be back in touch soon.”
Again, the above is an excerpt from—not a full transcript of—the publisher’s email to Graffius.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 12 November 2024
On 12 November 2024, Graffius sent a follow up email to the publisher. Here's an excerpt from the message (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
"Chief Publications Officer Gillian Shasby,
Until the infringing article is appropriately addressed, it continues to spread misinformation and violate my intellectual property rights.
I provided notification of the infringement on 24 September (which may have appeared a few minutes into the following day). That was 49 days ago.
On 11 October, I was informed that: “... expect this process to be concluded in less than 4 weeks’ time.” That was 32 days (4.6 weeks) ago.
Why hasn’t this been addressed?
Exactly when will it be addressed?
I expressly reserve all rights in this troubling, damaging, and consequential matter.
Sincerely,
Scott M. Graffius"
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 15 November 2024
Chief Publications Officer Gillian Shasby sent an email to Graffius. The email reported that:
After the changes have been implemented or if there are other updates, the information will be added to this Post-Publication Notes section.
Update on 20 December 2024
This matter was resolved on 20 December 2024.
The publisher published an Erratum.
Graffius published new article.


Copyright
Copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Content on this site—including text, images, videos, and data—may not be used for training or input into any artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automatized learning systems, or published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.

The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/aans-jns



If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

Introduction
Plagiarism, defined as ‘to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own: use (another's production) without crediting the source’ (source: Merriam-Webster), damages trust, credibility, and the value of original content. The theft of intellectual property distorts the scholarly record and results in misinformation. It often violates copyright as well.
Publications must respond decisively to plagiarism reports by swiftly acknowledging complaints, conducting thorough investigations, and taking appropriate actions such as retractions.

Quiz Question
The visual at the top of this article depicts a quiz related to a real situation. Here's the question:
You discovered blatant plagiarism in a Journal of Neurosurgery publication of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. You reported it—with detailed specifics and indisputable evidence—to the authors, the editors, and the publisher. What should happen next (within five business days)?
🔘 A. The publisher or one or more of the authors or editors replies with, “Thank you for alerting us about the violation; we’re looking into it.”
🔘 B. The publisher or one or more of the authors or editors challenges you to a duel to defend their honor.
🔘 C. Neither the publisher nor any of the authors or editors responds. Radio silence.

Quiz Answer
The question is about what should happen. For that reason, the correct answer about what should happen is: 'A. The publisher or one or more of the authors or editors replies with, "Thank you for alerting us about the violation; we're looking into it."
When publications receive a report of plagiarism, they should promptly acknowledge receipt of the report by responding within no longer than five business days. This action demonstrates transparency, professionalism, and a commitment to maintaining the integrity of the academic record. Conversely, not expeditiously acknowledging receipt of the report conveys a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, and a lack of commitment to integrity.

Radio Silence by the Publisher, the Editors, and the Authors
It would be nice if the quiz above was just a hypothetical/thought experiment. Unfortunately, it's related to the real situation where Scott M. Graffius discovered blatant plagiarism in a Journal of Neurosurgery publication of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and notified the authors, the editors, and the publisher of the violation on 24 September 2024.
As mentioned earlier, publishers should promptly acknowledge receipt of plagiarism reports by responding within no longer than five business days. As of the date of this article (8 October 2024), 10 business days (14 calendar days) have elapsed since the violation was reported. And the publisher, the editors, and the authors maintain radio silence.
Plagiarism is bad. By not acknowledging receipt of the report, the publisher, the editors, and the authors made the bad situation worst. And the publisher (JNS Publishing Group / American Association of Neurological Surgeons) has not yet taken action such as retraction or removal of the infringing material.

It is imperative that the publisher demonstrate—through their actions—a commitment to upholding the highest standards of ethics and intellectual property rights. The publisher must take immediate and decisive action such as retracting or removing the infringing content. Otherwise, the publisher is knowingly endorsing, permitting or otherwise allowing ongoing misinformation and the perpetual violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
Details follow. If there's an update on this consequential matter after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.


Details on the Plagiarism
On 24 September 2024, Scott M. Graffius observed plagiarism in a Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) publication of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. That same day, Graffius wrote to the publisher, the editors, and the authors of the violating material. His email was titled, 'JNS paper plagiarized and damaged the marketability and value of Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted property.' It contained detailed specifics and indisputable evidence. Saved as a PDF, Graffius' email is 19 pages.
As a high-level overview, thumbnails of the 19-page email are shown below. Then, select 'readable' excerpts are provided.

Excerpts from Graffius' 19-page email follow. They're shown in italic font.
Here's an excerpt from the introduction section of Graffius' email.
Authors of a Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) paper plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property, constituting a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights. Here are the specifics on the publication.
- Publication: Journal of Neurosurgery
- Publisher: JNS Publishing Group, American Association of Neurological Surgeons
- Paper: Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery
- Authors: Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C
- Publication Date: 12 May 2023
- Volume/Issue: Volume 139: Issue 6
- Page Range: 1552-1559
- DOI link: https://doi.org/10.3171/2023.4.JNS222254
Here's an excerpt from the section of the email with background information.
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman, Ph.D. and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius’ first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development.’ It’s a unique perspective on the five phases of team development — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning — and it’s inclusive of the characteristics/features/traits and strategies for each phase.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
The integrated text from Graffius’ copyrighted property applies in this case.
Graffius initially developed his intellectual property in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it. An authorized example of his copyrighted property applicable in this case (2022 edition) is here: https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/teams- 2022.html .
Here's more from the section of the email with background information.
Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: “Copyright © 2008-2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.”
Additionally, his respective article includes this: “To request permission to use the 'Phases of Team Development' visual, contact Scott M. Graffius. If approved, high resolution JPG and PNG image files will be provided, subject to terms and conditions.”
And also this: “© Copyright 2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.”
Conference organizers, businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. To date, he’s presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries, including:
- Armenia,
- Australia,
- Brazil,
- Canada,
- Czech Republic,
- Finland,
- France,
- Germany,
- Greece,
- Hong Kong,
- Hungary,
- India,
- Ireland,
- Lithuania,
- Luxembourg,
- Nepal,
- Netherlands,
- New Zealand,
- Norway,
- Romania,
- Sweden,
- Switzerland,
- United Arab Emirates,
- United Kingdom,
- and the United States.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is central and key to many of those sessions. His rate card and a listing of his engagements are at https://scottgraffius.com/resources/Exceptional-PPM-and-PMO-Solutions- Rate-Card-for-2024-2025-v24071607.pdf and https://scottgraffius.com/publicspeaker.html, respectively.
With an authorization/license from Graffius, many organizations around the world have featured and used his copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ work. Select examples include:
- Adobe,
- American Management Association,
- Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute,
- Boston University,
- Broadcom,
- Cisco,
- Deimos Aerospace,
- DevOps Institute,
- Erste Group Bank AG (Austria),
- FINAT,
- Ford Motor Company,
- FSU College of Medicine,
- Hasso Plattner Institute (Germany),
- IEEE,
- Johns Hopkins University,
- LeadingEng,
- London South Bank University,
- Manufacturers Alliance,
- Microsoft,
- New Zealand Government,
- Oracle,
- Royal Australasian College of Physicians,
- TBS Switzerland,
- Torrens University (Australia),
- Tufts University,
- U.S. National Park Service,
- U.S. Tennis Association,
- UC San Diego,
- UK Sports Institute,
- University of Galway (Ireland),
- Victorian Institute of Technology (Australia),
- Virginia Tech,
- Warsaw University,
- Western Sydney University (Australia),
- World Resources Institute,
- Yale University,
- ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences,
- and many others.
The following excerpts are from the section of the email detailing the violation.
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are clearly noted.
Authors (Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C) of the JNS paper ('Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery') did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, the authors used Graffius’ copyrighted property in their JNS article: they plagiarized Graffius’ work, damaging the marketability and value of his intellectual property.
The following excerpts from the email provide some side-by-side examples of Graffius' copyrighted property and the plagiarism in the JNS publication.
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “High motivation, trust, and empathy”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “High motivation, trust, and empathy”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Individuals defer to team needs”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Individuals defer to team needs”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Effectively producing deliverables”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Effectively producing deliverables”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Consistent performance”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Consistent performance”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Purpose and goals are well-understood”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Purpose and goals are well-understood”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “More confident”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “More confidence”
- Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Members are engaged and supportive”
- Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Members are engaged and supportive”
The exhibit below also shows some examples of the blatant plagiarism.

The following excerpts are from the conclusion section of Graffius' email.
Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: “Copyright © 2008-2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.” Additionally, his article includes this: “To request permission to use the 'Phases of Team Development' visual, contact Scott M. Graffius. If approved, high resolution JPG and PNG image files will be provided, subject to terms and conditions.” And also this: “© Copyright 2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.”
Authors (Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C) of the JNS paper (Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery) did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
The authors of the JNS paper used Graffius’ copyrighted property, including plagiarizing it. The JNS paper did not attribute material to Graffius through citation or otherwise. By doing so, the authors are wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they are the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted content.
The JNS authors’ plagiarism damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
The aforementioned actions of the authors of the JNS paper are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
The following excerpt is also from the conclusion section of Graffius' email.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. He is consulting with an IP attorney in Los Angeles. Graffius reserves his rights in this disturbing and consequential matter.
The preceding provided excerpts of key content—not the full transcript—of Graffius' email.
Authors of the Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) paper blatantly plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property, constituting a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
It is shocking that neither the publisher nor any of the editors or authors have responded to Graffius' report on the violation. By not acknowledging receipt of the plagiarism report, the publisher signals a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, and a lack of commitment to integrity.
It is imperative that the publisher, JNS Publishing Group / the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, demonstrate—through their actions—a commitment to upholding the highest standards of ethics and intellectual property rights. The publisher must take immediate and decisive action such as retracting or removing the infringing content. Otherwise, they risk losing their credibility and the trust placed in them by scientific and academic communities.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
Read on to learn:
- About the Journal of Neurosurgery,
- About the American Association of Neurological Surgeons,
- About Scott M. Graffius,
- References/Sources,
- How to Cite This Article,
- Post-Publication Notes,
- and more.

About the Journal of Neurosurgery
The Journal of Neurosurgery (JNS) is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of neurosurgery. It is published by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the editor-in-chief is James Rutka. The JNS brands itself as the world’s leading journal on neurosurgery and the official journal of the AANS.
Visit the JNS website to learn more.
Note: Scott M. Graffius included (among others) James Rutka, AANS Editor-in-Chief, on the 24 September 2024 email detailing the plagiarism violation.

About the American Association of Neurological Surgeons
The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is dedicated to advancing neurological surgery. The AANS says that through rigorous education, groundbreaking research, robust advocacy, and the advancement of outcomes science, it strives to ensure the highest standards of patient care are met and exceeded. Katie O. Orrico is Chief Executive Officer of the AANS.
Visit the AANS website to learn more.
Note: Scott M. Graffius included (among others) Katie O. Orrico, AANS CEO, on the 24 September 2024 email detailing the plagiarism violation.

About Scott M. Graffius

Scott M. Graffius is a global leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, an authority on temporal dynamics on social media platforms, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author, and an international public speaker.
He's generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he's served — as a consultant through Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions and Exceptional Agility, and as a member of staff at organizations. Businesses and industries range from consumer products to advanced technology (including AI, R&D), e-commerce, music, streaming/OTT video, television, film, video games, financial services, government, and more.
Graffius and content from his books (Agile Scrum and Agile Transformation), talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities around the world. Examples include Adobe, American Management Association, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Bayer, Boston University, Broadcom, Cisco, Deimos Aerospace, DevOps Institute, EU's European Commission, Ford Motor Company, Hasso Plattner Institute Germany, IEEE, Johns Hopkins University, London South Bank University, Microsoft, National Academy of Sciences, New Zealand Government, Oracle, Project Management Institute, Torrens University Australia, UC San Diego, TBS Switzerland, UK Sports Institute, University of Galway Ireland, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. National Park Service, U.S. Tennis Association, Virginia Tech, Warsaw University of Technology, Yale University, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, and many others.
He delights audiences around the world with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops. He's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit here to learn more and here to ask Scott to speak at your event.



About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions

Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States

About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change

Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States


References/Sources
The following is a list of material on publishing standards and procedures. Some cover the reporting and handling of plagiarism.
- Alter, Alexandra (2019, September 22). It’s a Fact: Mistakes are Embarrassing the Publishing Industry. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/22/business/publishing-books-errors.html.
- American Psychological Association (2019, November). Correction Notices. Available at: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/research-publication/correction-notices.
- Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) (2018, November 15). ACM Publications Policy on the Withdrawal, Correction, Retraction, and Removal of Works from ACM Publications and ACM DL. Available at: https://www.acm.org/publications/policies/retraction-policy.
- Cambridge University Press (n.d.). Publishing Ethics. Available at: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/flow/information/journal-policies/publishing-ethics.
- Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (n.d.). Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections. Available at: https://publicationethics.org/postpublication.
- Elsevier (n.d.). Policy and Best practice: Errata & Corrigenda. Available at: https://www.elsevier.com/editor/perk/policy-and-best-practice-errata-and-corrigenda.
- Emerald Publishing (n.d.). Article Withdrawal & Correction. Available at: https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/publish-with-us/author-policies/article-withdrawal-correction.
- Faust, Jessica (2007, October 3). Typos and Errors After Publication. Available at: https://bookendsliterary.com/typos-and-errors-after-publication.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2024, March 22). The Protocol for Reporting an Error to an Author or Publisher. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/error-reporting.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.18830.98883.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2021, November 10). An Error Was Introduced Into the Seventh Edition of 'A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)'. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/pmbok7.html.
- Idunn (n.d.). Publishing and Research Ethics Policy. Available at: https://www.idunn.no/info/publiseringsetikk.
- IEEE (n.d.). Publishing Ethics: Guidelines and Policies: Post-Publication Policies. Available at: https://books.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/book-publishing-at-ieee/publishing-ethics/guidelines-and-policies/post-publication-policies.
- Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) (n.d.). Guidelines for Ethical Behavior in Publishing. Available at: https://pubsonline.informs.org/page/opre/guidelines-for-ethical-behavior-in-publishing.
- IntechOpen (n.d.). Retraction and Correction Policy. Available at: https://www.intechopen.com/page/retraction-and-correction-policy.
- Marasović, Tea; Utrobiĉić, Ana; and Maruŝić, Ana (2018, March 31). Transparency of Retracting and Replacing Articles. The Lancet, 391 (10127): 1244-1245.
- Nature (n.d.). Editorial and Publishing Policies. Available at: https://www.nature.com/srep/journal-policies/editorial-policies.
- O’Reilly Media (n.d.). Errata for Java in a Nutshell. Available at: https://www.oreilly.com/catalog/errata.csp?isbn=0636920030775.
- Palgrave Macmillan (n.d.). Corrections and Retractions. Available at: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/editorial-policies/corrections-and-retractions.
- Pearson Education / InformIT (n.d.). Contact Us: Submit Errata. Available at: https://www.informit.com/about/contact_us/index.aspx?ContactUs_Topics_Partners_id=9d39709c-c911-4c96-ac2c-2c5a22d68ba9.
- Project Management Institute (PMI) (n.d.). PMI Standards Program Comment Form. Available at: https://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/public/pdf/pmbok-standards/pmi-standards-program-comment-form.pdf.
- Project Management Institute (PMI) (n.d.). Standards Errata Sheets. Available at: https://www.pmi.org/pmbok-guide-standards/foundational/pmbok/errata-sheets.
- Public Library of Science (PLOS) (n.d.). Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions. Available at: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/s/corrections-and-retractions.
- SAE International (n.d.). ARINC Standard – Errata Report Template. Available at: https://wcm14.sae.org/site/binaries/content/assets/itc/content/arinc/errata-form.docx [note: selecting the link will download the file].
- Sage Publications (n.d.). Sage Corrections and Retractions Policy. Available at: https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/sage-corrections-and-retractions-policy.
- Science Publishing Group (n.d.). Ethical Guidelines. Available at: https://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/information/ethical-guidelines.
- Springer (n.d.). Editorial Policies: Corrections and Retractions. Available at: https://www.springer.com/gp/editorial-policies/corrections-and-retractions.
- Taylor & Francis (n.d.). Publishing Ethics for Journal Editors: FAQs. Available at: https://editorresources.taylorandfrancis.com/publishing-ethics-for-editors/publishing-ethics-faqs.
- Ubiquity Press (n.d.). Correction and Retraction Policy. Available at: https://ubiquitypress.com/site/corrections.
- Warner, Brooke (2019, April 26). How to Publish a Perfect Book. Available at: https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/pw-select/article/79902-how-to-publish-a-perfect-book.html.
- Wiley (n.d.). Best Practice Guidelines on Research Integrity and Publishing Ethics. Available at: https://authorservices.wiley.com/ethics-guidelines/index.html.
- Wiley Author Services (n.d.). Wiley's Policy for Handling Retractions, Withdrawals, and Expressions of Concern. Available at: https://authorservices.wiley.com/ethics-guidelines/retractions-and-expressions-of-concern.html.
- World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) (n.d.). Managing Intellectual Property in the Book Publishing Industry. Available at: https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/copyright/868/wipo_pub_868.pdf.


How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, October 8). Radio Silence from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons on Report of Blatant Plagiarism in Their ‘Journal of Neurosurgery’ Publication. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/aans-jns-publication.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.25837.40160


Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Update on 11 October 2024
As a recap, Graffius’ 24 September 2024 report provided indisputable proof of plagiarism. Graffius emailed the detailed report to the publisher, the editors, and the authors. However, weeks passed with radio silence. There was not even an acknowledgement of receipt of the report.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. The publisher’s non-response signaled that they were knowingly endorsing, permitting or otherwise allowing ongoing misinformation and the perpetual violation of Graffius' intellectual property. For those reasons, Graffius expanded communications on this consequential matter. Here's one example (of many).
On 11 October 2024, the publisher sent their first response to Graffius. Here’s an excerpt from the publisher’s email (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
“Thank you for your email and your patience as we have looked into this matter. We have concluded our investigation. The author did indeed unintentionally include unattributed references to your work. An erratum and article correction by the author are in process. Once submitted to us, time to publication is usually 2-3 weeks. I would expect this process to be concluded in less than 4 weeks’ time. I will send you a link to the errata and corrected paper for your files once they have been published online.”
Again, the above is an excerpt from—not a full transcript of—the publisher’s email to Graffius.
The publisher used the term “unintentionally.” That term, whether referencing a ridiculous excuse of the plagiarizing authors or otherwise, is counter-indicated by the undeniable facts in this serious matter and should not be used. For that reason, Graffius responded to the publisher’s email the same day. Here’s an excerpt from Graffius’ email (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
“Your response warrants a reply. So here it is.
I will not re-state my full 24 September 2024* report of the indisputable facts. But here’s an excerpt:
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “High motivation, trust, and empathy”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “High motivation, trust, and empathy”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Individuals defer to team needs”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Individuals defer to team needs”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Consistent performance”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Consistent performance”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Purpose and goals are well-understood”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Purpose and goals are well-understood”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “More confident”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “More confidence”
🟢 Content from Scott M. Graffius 2022 copyrighted property: “Members are engaged and supportive”
🔴 Content from 2023 JNS article, plagiarizing Graffius’ work: “Members are engaged and supportive”
My copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on my copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. Specifically, it reads: ‘Copyright © 2008-2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.’ Additionally, my corresponding publication includes this: ‘© Copyright 2022 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.’
Authors (Whitney E. Muhlestein, MD; Kate W. C. Chang, MA, MS; Denise Justice, OTRL, Sarah Johnson, MS, OTRL; Shawn Brown; and Miriana Popadich, MSN, NP-C) of the JNS paper ('Developing interdisciplinary research teams in neurosurgery: key elements to success in brachial plexus and peripheral nerve surgery') did not request nor receive permission to use my copyrighted property.
Plagiarism is defined as ‘to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own: use (another's production) without crediting the source’ (source: Merriam-Webster). It infringes on the intellectual property rights of others, results in misinformation, and often violates copyright.
The authors of the JNS paper used my copyrighted property, including plagiarizing it. Most of their plagiarism was word-for-word use of my intellectual property.
The JNS paper did not attribute material to me through citation or otherwise. By doing so, the authors are wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they are the author and owner of my respective copyrighted content.
So, these author(s)—who have been proven to be plagiarizers—claim the violation was done “unintentionally”? They unintentionally took my copyrighted property and used it (mostly word-for-word) unintentionally, and unintentionally failed to credit me on their respective diagram, and also unintentionally failed to cite me in the references section of the paper? The authors are insulting others with their excuse. “Unintentionally” is a ridiculous and desperate attempt to ‘minimize’ or ‘spin’ their blatant violation. I reject it entirely and so should you.
Wouldn’t it be refreshing to see the proven plagiarizers take a nice turn and demonstrate integrity, sincerity, and remorse?! They could have, and should have, simply said that what they did was wrong. However, by asserting “unintentionally,” the authors are demonstrating an ongoing lack of integrity, sincerity, and remorse. I must say, I’m greatly concerned.
Maybe the authors are procedurally allowed to (falsely) claim whatever they want, including “unintentionally,” in their response to the charges. However, if “unintentionally” (or a similar term) appears in the official record—whether in an erratum, retraction, or other action—it must be noted that “unintentionally” (or a similar term) is the claim of the authors of the JNS paper. It is vital that the that it is made clear that “unintentionally” (or a similar operative term) is not the conclusion or position of others. Here, 'others' includes me. Given the facts and without bias, ‘others’ certainty also includes you, the Journal of Neurosurgery, JNS Publishing Group, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and others.
Plagiarism is a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and intellectual property rights. The authors of the JNS paper damaged the marketability and value of my copyrighted property.
I maintain, enforce, and protect my copyright and other intellectual property rights. As mentioned earlier, I am consulting with an IP attorney in Los Angeles. I reserve my rights in this disturbing and consequential matter.
Given the serious nature of this issue, please reply with a short confirmation that you received this communication.”
Again, the above is an excerpt from—not a full transcript of—Graffius’ email to the publisher.
The publisher replied the same day with (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
“That word was solely mine, and not a reflection of what will be conveyed. You are correct that it is irrelevant to the discussion. Apologies for the miscommunication. Please be assured we do not take this situation lightly. Acknowledging receipt of your correspondence with this email. I will be back in touch soon.”
Again, the above is an excerpt from—not a full transcript of—the publisher’s email to Graffius.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 12 November 2024
On 12 November 2024, Graffius sent a follow up email to the publisher. Here's an excerpt from the message (it appears in italic font, within quotation marks):
"Chief Publications Officer Gillian Shasby,
Until the infringing article is appropriately addressed, it continues to spread misinformation and violate my intellectual property rights.
I provided notification of the infringement on 24 September (which may have appeared a few minutes into the following day). That was 49 days ago.
On 11 October, I was informed that: “... expect this process to be concluded in less than 4 weeks’ time.” That was 32 days (4.6 weeks) ago.
Why hasn’t this been addressed?
Exactly when will it be addressed?
I expressly reserve all rights in this troubling, damaging, and consequential matter.
Sincerely,
Scott M. Graffius"
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 15 November 2024
Chief Publications Officer Gillian Shasby sent an email to Graffius. The email reported that:
- The publisher will rectify the current lack of attribution and correct the scientific record by updating the legend to Figure 3 and add Graffius’ work to the References.
- The publisher will publish an Erratum, stating that permission was not received and proper attribution was not given for the use of copyrighted material in Figure 3 of the paper and that permission has now been received and correctly attributed, and will include a link to the corrected paper. The Erratum will be deposited to PubMed and Crossref.
- The publisher will correct the paper and upload it to replace the current version. A note will appear within the corrected paper, informing the reader of the change that has been made and linking to the Erratum. All deposited versions (PubMed, CrossRef) will be replaced with the corrected paper. This process is in accordance with best practices for scientific publication.
After the changes have been implemented or if there are other updates, the information will be added to this Post-Publication Notes section.
Update on 20 December 2024
This matter was resolved on 20 December 2024.
The publisher published an Erratum.
Graffius published new article.


Copyright
Copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Content on this site—including text, images, videos, and data—may not be used for training or input into any artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automatized learning systems, or published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.

The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/aans-jns

Bournemouth University Used Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property
09 October 2024
BY SCOTT M. GRAFFIUS | ScottGraffius.com


If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

Introduction
A whistleblower/tip informed Scott M. Graffius that Bournemouth University was using his copyrighted property without credit. After Graffius received the details including proof, he confirmed that the report was valid.
The unauthorized and unattributed use of Graffius' copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor ‘fair dealing’ nor otherwise allowed.
Based on the indisputable facts, the bad acts involve the ethical issue of plagiarism and the legal issue of copyright infringement.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. This article serves as a clarion call for Bournemouth University to face the repercussions of, and take responsibility for, their blatant and damaging violation.

Background
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius' first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development’ as a unique perspective and visual conveying the five phases of team development — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning — inclusive of a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase.
Graffius' intellectual property (IP) is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
Graffius initially developed his ‘Phases of Team Development’ unique material in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it.
For reference, the visual from the edition applicable to this case (v2019) [Exhibit 1] is shown below. It is also available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/Using-Bruce- Tuckmans-Phases-of-Team-Development.html and other locations. The integrated text applies.

As shown above, Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: "Copyright © 2008-2019 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com."
Organizations around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. To date, he's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries, including:

Graffius ‘Phases of Team Development’ IP is central and key to many of those sessions. His rate card and a listing of his engagements are at https://scottgraffius.com/resources/Exceptional-PPM-and-PMO-Solutions-Rate-Card-for-2024-2025-v24071607.pdf and https://scottgraffius.com/publicspeaker.html, respectively.
With an authorization/license from Graffius, his ‘Phases of Team Development’ IP is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the world. Examples include:
Copyrights protect the intellectual property rights of creators, ensuring they receive recognition and compensation for their work, thus incentivizing creativity and innovation. Graffius is vigilant in upholding, protecting and enforcing his copyrights and other IP rights.

Bournemouth University Used Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property Without Authorization or Attribution
Indisputable proof follows.
Exhibit 2 is below. It provides views of Bournemouth University 'Key Programme Information.' Pages 1 of 2 from the programme are shown. A zoomed-in view of page 2—where 'Strategic Sport Management' is circled in red—is also shown.

Exhibit 3 is below. It shows pages 1 and 7 of the infringing document.

As shown above, the infringing document is marked with:
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property was not requested nor approved.
Nevertheless, Graffius’ copyrighted property was used in the infringing publication.
Comparing Graffius' copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' intellectual property with the infringing document is revealing.
The infringing publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development word-for-word. Here are some examples:
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Forming: "Questioning"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Forming: "Questioning"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Forming: "Socializing"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Forming: "Socializing"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Forming: "Displaying eagerness"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Forming: "Displaying eagerness"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Resistance"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Resistance"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Lack of participation"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Lack of participation"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Conflict"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Conflict"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Competition"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Competition"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "High emotions"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "High emotions"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Norming: "Reconciliation"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Norming: "Reconciliation"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Norming: "Relief"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Norming: "Relief"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Adjourning: "Sadness"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Adjourning: "Sadness"
Additionally, the infringing publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development with slight re-wording (which, in context, is still infringement). Here are some examples:
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Norming: "Members are engaged and supportive"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Norming: "Engaged" and "Supportive"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Performing: "Demonstrations of interdependence"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Performing: "Interdependence"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Adjourning: "Recognition of team and individual efforts"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Adjourning: "Recognition of individual and collective efforts"
The preceding examples are not an exhaustive list.
The comparison in Exhibit 4 (below) also shows the extensive infringement in the educational material from Bournemouth University.

Conclusion
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property was not requested nor approved.
Nevertheless, the infringing publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property.
A significant volume of Graffius’ copyrighted property was used.
The infringing publication used Graffius' copyrighted property word-for-word and also with slight re-wording (which, in context, is still a violation).
The infringing publication did not attribute Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Regardless of intent, the infringement wrongly leads others to falsely believe that the author of the infringing publication is the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted property.
So long as the infringing publication exists anywhere, it continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property.
The infringement damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
For the aforementioned reasons, the use of Graffius’ copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor ‘fair dealing’ nor otherwise allowed.
Bournemouth University must immediately implement the following three (3) actions:
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
He reserves his rights in this disturbing and consequential matter.
This case remains open.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

About Bournemouth University
Founded in 1992, Bournemouth University is a public university in Bournemouth, England. Its main campus is in neighboring Poole. The university has over 16,000 students.
In 2023, Bournemouth University received a silver rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework, a government assessment of the quality of undergraduate teaching in universities and other higher education providers in England.
In 2024, it was proven that Bournemouth University educational materials infringed on the copyright of Scott M. Graffius.
To learn more about the university, visit https://www.bournemouth.ac.uk.

About Scott M. Graffius

Scott M. Graffius is a global leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, an authority on temporal dynamics on social media platforms, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author, and an international public speaker.
See his bio to learn more.










Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Update on 6 November 2024
To date, the university has failed to acknowledge receipt of the report of their infringement or otherwise respond.
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.


How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, October 9). Bournemouth University Used Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/bournemouth-university-2024.html.


Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from Bournemouth University content, attributed to Bournemouth University and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Bournemouth University name, mark, and content (except for what was stolen from others) are the property of Bournemouth University.


Copyright
Copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Content on this site—including text, images, videos, and data—may not be used for training or input into any artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automatized learning systems, or published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.



If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

Introduction
A whistleblower/tip informed Scott M. Graffius that Bournemouth University was using his copyrighted property without credit. After Graffius received the details including proof, he confirmed that the report was valid.
The unauthorized and unattributed use of Graffius' copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor ‘fair dealing’ nor otherwise allowed.
Based on the indisputable facts, the bad acts involve the ethical issue of plagiarism and the legal issue of copyright infringement.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. This article serves as a clarion call for Bournemouth University to face the repercussions of, and take responsibility for, their blatant and damaging violation.

Background
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius' first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development’ as a unique perspective and visual conveying the five phases of team development — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning — inclusive of a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase.
Graffius' intellectual property (IP) is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
Graffius initially developed his ‘Phases of Team Development’ unique material in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it.
For reference, the visual from the edition applicable to this case (v2019) [Exhibit 1] is shown below. It is also available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/Using-Bruce- Tuckmans-Phases-of-Team-Development.html and other locations. The integrated text applies.

As shown above, Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: "Copyright © 2008-2019 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com."
Organizations around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. To date, he's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries, including:
- Armenia,
- Australia,
- Brazil,
- Canada,
- Czech Republic,
- Finland,
- France,
- Germany,
- Greece,
- Hong Kong,
- Hungary,
- India,
- Ireland,
- Lithuania,
- Luxembourg,
- Nepal,
- Netherlands,
- New Zealand,
- Norway,
- Romania,
- Sweden,
- Switzerland,
- United Arab Emirates,
- United Kingdom,
- and the United States.

Graffius ‘Phases of Team Development’ IP is central and key to many of those sessions. His rate card and a listing of his engagements are at https://scottgraffius.com/resources/Exceptional-PPM-and-PMO-Solutions-Rate-Card-for-2024-2025-v24071607.pdf and https://scottgraffius.com/publicspeaker.html, respectively.
With an authorization/license from Graffius, his ‘Phases of Team Development’ IP is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the world. Examples include:
- Adobe,
- American Management Association,
- Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute,
- Bayer,
- Boston University,
- Broadcom,
- Cisco,
- Deimos Aerospace,
- DevOps Institute,
- Ford Motor Company,
- Hasso Plattner Institute,
- IEEE,
- Johns Hopkins University,
- LeadingEng,
- London South Bank University,
- Manufacturers Alliance,
- Microsoft,
- New Zealand Government,
- Oracle,
- TBS Switzerland,
- Torrens University Australia,
- U.S. National Park Service,
- U.S. Tennis Association,
- UC San Diego,
- UK Sports Institute,
- University of Galway Ireland,
- Virginia Tech,
- Warsaw University,
- Yale University,
- and many others.
Copyrights protect the intellectual property rights of creators, ensuring they receive recognition and compensation for their work, thus incentivizing creativity and innovation. Graffius is vigilant in upholding, protecting and enforcing his copyrights and other IP rights.

Bournemouth University Used Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property Without Authorization or Attribution
Indisputable proof follows.
Exhibit 2 is below. It provides views of Bournemouth University 'Key Programme Information.' Pages 1 of 2 from the programme are shown. A zoomed-in view of page 2—where 'Strategic Sport Management' is circled in red—is also shown.

Exhibit 3 is below. It shows pages 1 and 7 of the infringing document.

As shown above, the infringing document is marked with:
- “Bournemouth University”
- “MSc Sport Management”
- “Strategic Sport Management 23&24”
- “Theories of Leadership IV: Managing Conflicts”
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property was not requested nor approved.
Nevertheless, Graffius’ copyrighted property was used in the infringing publication.
Comparing Graffius' copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' intellectual property with the infringing document is revealing.
The infringing publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development word-for-word. Here are some examples:
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Forming: "Questioning"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Forming: "Questioning"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Forming: "Socializing"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Forming: "Socializing"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Forming: "Displaying eagerness"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Forming: "Displaying eagerness"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Resistance"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Resistance"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Lack of participation"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Lack of participation"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Conflict"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Conflict"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "Competition"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "Competition"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Storming: "High emotions"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Storming: "High emotions"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Norming: "Reconciliation"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Norming: "Reconciliation"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Norming: "Relief"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Norming: "Relief"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Adjourning: "Sadness"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Adjourning: "Sadness"
Additionally, the infringing publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development with slight re-wording (which, in context, is still infringement). Here are some examples:
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Norming: "Members are engaged and supportive"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Norming: "Engaged" and "Supportive"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Performing: "Demonstrations of interdependence"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Performing: "Interdependence"
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted Phases of Team Development property includes this for Adjourning: "Recognition of team and individual efforts"
🔴 The Bournemouth University infringing leadership publication includes this for Adjourning: "Recognition of individual and collective efforts"
The preceding examples are not an exhaustive list.
The comparison in Exhibit 4 (below) also shows the extensive infringement in the educational material from Bournemouth University.

Conclusion
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property was not requested nor approved.
Nevertheless, the infringing publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property.
A significant volume of Graffius’ copyrighted property was used.
The infringing publication used Graffius' copyrighted property word-for-word and also with slight re-wording (which, in context, is still a violation).
The infringing publication did not attribute Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Regardless of intent, the infringement wrongly leads others to falsely believe that the author of the infringing publication is the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted property.
So long as the infringing publication exists anywhere, it continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property.
The infringement damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
For the aforementioned reasons, the use of Graffius’ copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor ‘fair dealing’ nor otherwise allowed.
Bournemouth University must immediately implement the following three (3) actions:
- Remove the Infringing Material. Electronic Versions: Immediately remove the infringing material from digital platforms where it is advertised, promoted, sold, or distributed; this includes removing or disabling any online access to it. Physical Copies: If physical copies of the material are in inventory or circulation, stop further distribution; recall any copies already distributed; destroy physical copies.
- Issue a Retraction. Publish a formal retraction notice acknowledging the infringement and the steps taken to rectify the situation. The notice will present the facts as they are—the notice will not "spin" or "downplay" the infringement.
- Notify Relevant Parties. Recipients: Inform the respective subscribers, purchasers, or recipients of the material about the retraction, ensuring transparency about the issue; again, the notice will present the facts as they are—the notice will not "spin" or "downplay" the infringement. Indexes and Databases: Notify any databases or indexing services that list the material so they can update their records accordingly.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
He reserves his rights in this disturbing and consequential matter.
This case remains open.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

About Bournemouth University
Founded in 1992, Bournemouth University is a public university in Bournemouth, England. Its main campus is in neighboring Poole. The university has over 16,000 students.
In 2023, Bournemouth University received a silver rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework, a government assessment of the quality of undergraduate teaching in universities and other higher education providers in England.
In 2024, it was proven that Bournemouth University educational materials infringed on the copyright of Scott M. Graffius.
To learn more about the university, visit https://www.bournemouth.ac.uk.

About Scott M. Graffius

Scott M. Graffius is a global leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, an authority on temporal dynamics on social media platforms, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author, and an international public speaker.
See his bio to learn more.










Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Update on 6 November 2024
To date, the university has failed to acknowledge receipt of the report of their infringement or otherwise respond.
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.


How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, October 9). Bournemouth University Used Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/bournemouth-university-2024.html.


Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from Bournemouth University content, attributed to Bournemouth University and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Bournemouth University name, mark, and content (except for what was stolen from others) are the property of Bournemouth University.


Copyright
Copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Content on this site—including text, images, videos, and data—may not be used for training or input into any artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automatized learning systems, or published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.

Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property was Employed by the NHS — the Largest Single-Payer Healthcare System in Europe
09 November 2024
BY SCOTT M. GRAFFIUS | ScottGraffius.com


If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

Introduction
With authorization/license from Scott M. Graffius, over 200 organizations around the world have featured and used his intellectual property. However, some others engage in bad acts such as the ethical issue of plagiarism or the legal issue of copyright infringement, violating Graffius' intellectual property rights.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Among other measures, he identifies the violators to protect the integrity and value of his intellectual property contributions and to deter future violations. This is one such story.
How will the offending organization respond to being served a detailed notice of their blatant violation? Read on—including the Post-Publication Notes section—to find out.

Background
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius' first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development’ as a unique perspective and visual conveying the five phases of team development—Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning—inclusive of a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase.
Graffius' intellectual property is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
He initially developed his ‘Phases of Team Development’ unique material in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it.
Exhibit 1, Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property—the edition applicable to this case, is shown below and attached. It is also available here and here and other locations. The integrated text applies.

As shown above, Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: “Copyright © 2008-2021 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.”
[If you're looking for the now-current (2024) edition of Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' then select here.]
Organizations around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. To date, he's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries, including:
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is central and key to many of those sessions. His rate card and a listing of his engagements are at here and here, respectively.
With authorization/license from Graffius, his ‘Phases of Team Development’ property is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities worldwide. Examples include:
Copyrights protect the intellectual property rights of creators, ensuring they receive recognition and compensation for their work, thus incentivizing creativity and innovation. Graffius is vigilant in upholding, protecting, and enforcing his copyrights and other IP rights.
The National Health Service (NHS) — the Largest Single-Payer Healthcare System in Europe — Violated Graffius’ Intellectual Property Rights
Here's information on the NHS’s infringing publication:
Exhibit 2 is shown below and attached. It provides excerpts from the NHS’s ‘System Convening’ infringing publication, which was delivered at the ‘NHS Trusts and Primary Care Collaboration Knowledge Sharing Event’ on 16 October 2024 (recorded and published as a video). The exhibit shows:

Indisputable proof of the violation is delineated next.
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his 2021 intellectual property.
The NHS (inclusive of its entities and people) did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, the NHS used Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property in its 2024 infringing publication.
NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used a significant volume of Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
NHS’s infringing 2024 publication failed to acknowledge Graffius' ownership of his respective content, thereby misleading others including the public into believing that it, the NHS, is the author and rightful owner of Graffius' intellectual property.
A review of the NHS’s 2024 publication uncovered a slew of infringing content.
Exhibit 3 is below and attached. It provides a side-by-side view of content from Graffius’ 2021 ‘Phases of Team Development’ copyrighted property and the NHS’s 2024 infringing publication.

As shown, the NHS blatantly infringed on Graffius’ copyright.
The NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted content word-for-word.
In what is reasonably considered to be the NHS’s demonstration of its knowing and willful infringement, the NHS author(s) of the infringing 2024 publication seemed to attempt to conceal their theft by slightly altering some words. The NHS author(s) localized some content (such as changing "socializing" to "socialising") and made a few other slight alterations (such as changing "&" to "and"). All of that is still infringement.
In addition to Exhibit 3, here’s a comparison of content from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property and what the NHS has in its infringing 2024 publication.
Forming Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Displaying eagerness”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Displaying eagerness”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Socializing”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Socialising”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Generally polite tone”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Generally polite tones”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Sticking to safe topics”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Sticking to safe topics”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Unclear about how one fits in”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Unclear about how one fits in”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Some anxiety & questioning”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Some anxiety and questioning”
Storming Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Some resistance”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Some resistance”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Lack of participation”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Lack of participation”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Conflict based on differences of feelings & opinions”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Conflict based on differences of feelings and opinions”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Competition”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Competition”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “High emotions”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “High emotions”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Starting to move towards group norms”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Starting to move towards group norms”
Norming Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Purpose & goals are well-understood”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Collectively understood purpose & goals”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “More confident”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Increased confidence”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Improved commitment”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Improved commitment”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Members are engaged and supportive”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Members are engaged”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Relief, lowered anxiety”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Relief and lowered anxiety”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Developing cohesion”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Greater cohesion”
Performing Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “High motivation, trust & empathy”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “High motivation and empathy”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Individuals defer to team needs”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Individuals defer to partnership needs”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Consistent performance”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Consistent performance”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Demonstrations of interdependence & self-management”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Demonstration of interdependence and self management”
Conclusion
Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
The NHS did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, the NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used Graffius’ copyrighted 2021 property.
The NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used Graffius’ 2021 copyright content word-for-word.
In what is reasonably considered to be the NHS’s demonstration of it knowing and willful infringement, the NHS author(s) of the infringing 2024 publication seemed to attempt to conceal their theft by slightly altering some words. The NHS author(s) localized some content (such as changing "socializing" to "socialising") and made a few other slight alterations (such as changing "&" to "and"). All of that is still infringement.
The NHS’s 2024 infringing publication used a significant volume of Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
NHS’s infringing 2024 publication failed to acknowledge Graffius' ownership of his respective content, thereby misleading others including the public into believing that it, the NHS, is the author and rightful owner of Graffius' intellectual property.
The NHS’s infringement has damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ intellectual property.
The NHS’s use of Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property was not ‘fair dealing’ nor ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
Copyright infringement is disgraceful, unprofessional, unethical, immoral, and illegal.
So long as the NHS’s infringing material exists anywhere, in any form, the NHS continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights. Accordingly, time is of the essence.
The NHS must immediately implement the following two (2) actions:
Again, time is of the essence. Both actions must be fulfilled by 6:00 PM Pacific Time on Friday, 15 November 2024. By doing so, the NHS will demonstrate transparency, professionalism, integrity, accountability, and respect. However, if the NHS fails to do so, it will conversely convey a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, a lack of integrity, a lack of accountability, and a lack of respect.
Copyrights protect the intellectual property rights of creators, ensuring they receive recognition and compensation for their work, thus incentivizing creativity and innovation. Mr. Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
Graffius resides in the United States and the NHS is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. However, the United Kingdom and the United States have treaties regarding copyright: Berne (Paris) Dec. 5, 1887; Bilateral July 1, 18918; UCC Geneva Sept. 27, 1957; Phonograms Apr. 18, 1973; UCC Paris July 10, 1974; WTO Jan. 1, 1995; WCT Mar. 14, 2010; WPPT Mar. 14, 2010; VIP Jan. 1, 2021. Additionally, the United Kingdom has strong copyright laws. Copyright laws apply to this case.
Graffius expressly reserves his rights in this disturbing, damaging, and consequential matter.
Graffius communicated the preceding information to the NHS via email on 9 November 2024.
If there is an update to this article, it will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
Read on to learn:
• About the NHS,
• About Scott M. Graffius,
• How to Cite This Article,
• Post-Publication Notes,
• and more.


About the NHS
The National Health Service (NHS) is the publicly funded healthcare system in England, known for its commitment to providing universal healthcare free at the point of use. Financed largely through general taxation and National Insurance, the NHS is overseen by the Department of Health and Social Care, ensuring accessible healthcare for all legal residents of England, as well as residents from other parts of the UK.

About Scott M. Graffius

Scott M. Graffius is a global leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, an authority on temporal dynamics on social media platforms, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author, and an international public speaker.
See his bio to learn more.










About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions

Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.

About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change

Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.


How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, November 9). Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property was Employed by the NHS — the Largest Single-Payer Healthcare System in Europe. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/nhs-2024.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.24658.57289.


Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.24658.57289.
DOI link: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.24658.57289.


Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Update on 13 November 2024
As noted in the article, Graffius emailed details on the violation to the NHS including multiple departments and individuals. That email was sent on 9 November 2024.
Additionally, Graffius forwarded the 9 November 2024 email to Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of NHS England, on 13 November 2024.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 14 November 2024
Additionally, Graffius forwarded the 9 November 2024 email to Amanda Pritchard, NHS Chief Executive Officer, and Chris Whitty, NHS Chief Medical Officer, on 14 November 2024.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 15 November 2024
As detailed in the article, the NHS published their infringing video publication at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MesI1l7SAzY. The NHS removed their video on 15 November 2024. A screen shot is shown below.

Again, the article delineated undeniable proof that the NHS blatantly violated Graffius' intellectual property rights. While the NHS ultimately removed their infringing publication, it is shocking that the NHS failed to apologize to Graffius for their violation. Accordingly, the NHS strongly conveys a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, a lack of integrity, a lack of accountability, and a lack of respect. And this case remains open.
Graffius expressly reserves his rights in this disturbing, damaging, and consequential matter.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 20 November 2024
The NHS misrepresented Graffius’ copyrighted property as its own, spreading misinformation and violating intellectual property rights. As noted, the undeniable proof was provided to the NHS. That included multiple NHS departments and people such as
Amanda Pritchard, Chief Executive of NHS England.
To date, the NHS has not even apologized, demonstrating a lack of integrity, accountability, and respect. Accordingly, Graffius forwarded the undeniable proof of NHS’s violation to Pritchard’s superior on 20 November 2024. That’s Wes Streeting, the UK’s Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.
Any further updates will appear here.



Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts of content from the NHS, attributed to the NHS and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. NHS's content (excerpt for what was stolen from others) is the property of the NHS.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. Visit ScottGraffius.com.


Short Link for Article
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/nhs-2024


Copyright
Copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Content on this site—including text, images, videos, and data—may not be used for training or input into any artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automatized learning systems, or published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.




If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.

Introduction
With authorization/license from Scott M. Graffius, over 200 organizations around the world have featured and used his intellectual property. However, some others engage in bad acts such as the ethical issue of plagiarism or the legal issue of copyright infringement, violating Graffius' intellectual property rights.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Among other measures, he identifies the violators to protect the integrity and value of his intellectual property contributions and to deter future violations. This is one such story.
How will the offending organization respond to being served a detailed notice of their blatant violation? Read on—including the Post-Publication Notes section—to find out.

Background
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius' first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development’ as a unique perspective and visual conveying the five phases of team development—Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning—inclusive of a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase.
Graffius' intellectual property is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
He initially developed his ‘Phases of Team Development’ unique material in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it.
Exhibit 1, Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property—the edition applicable to this case, is shown below and attached. It is also available here and here and other locations. The integrated text applies.

As shown above, Graffius’ copyright ownership details are integrated into and appear on his copyrighted property. Specifically, it reads: “Copyright © 2008-2021 Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. For permission requests, contact scott@scottgraffius.com.”
[If you're looking for the now-current (2024) edition of Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' then select here.]
Organizations around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. To date, he's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries, including:
- Armenia,
- Australia,
- Brazil,
- Canada,
- Czech Republic,
- Finland,
- France,
- Germany,
- Greece,
- Hong Kong,
- Hungary,
- India,
- Ireland,
- Lithuania,
- Luxembourg,
- Nepal,
- Netherlands,
- New Zealand,
- Norway,
- Romania,
- Sweden,
- Switzerland,
- United Arab Emirates,
- United Kingdom,
- and the United States.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is central and key to many of those sessions. His rate card and a listing of his engagements are at here and here, respectively.
With authorization/license from Graffius, his ‘Phases of Team Development’ property is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities worldwide. Examples include:
- Adobe,
- American Management Association,
- Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute,
- Bayer,
- Boston University,
- Broadcom,
- Cisco,
- Deimos Aerospace,
- DevOps Institute,
- Ford Motor Company,
- Hasso Plattner Institute,
- IEEE,
- Johns Hopkins University,
- LeadingEng,
- Manufacturers Alliance,
- Microsoft,
- New Zealand Government,
- Oracle,
- Royal Australasian College of Physicians,
- Singapore Institute of Technology,
- TBS Switzerland,
- Torrens University Australia,
- US National Park Service,
- US Tennis Association,
- UC San Diego,
- University of Galway Ireland,
- Virginia Tech,
- Warsaw University,
- Yale University,
- and many others.
Copyrights protect the intellectual property rights of creators, ensuring they receive recognition and compensation for their work, thus incentivizing creativity and innovation. Graffius is vigilant in upholding, protecting, and enforcing his copyrights and other IP rights.
The National Health Service (NHS) — the Largest Single-Payer Healthcare System in Europe — Violated Graffius’ Intellectual Property Rights
Here's information on the NHS’s infringing publication:
- NHS event: ‘NHS Trusts and Primary Care Collaboration Knowledge Sharing Event.’
- Date of NHS event: 16 October 2024.
- Title of infringing NHS publication: ‘System Convening.’
- Known locations(s) of the HNS’s infringing 2024 publication: The delivery of the infringing NHS publication was recorded and published as a public video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MesI1l7SAzY .
Exhibit 2 is shown below and attached. It provides excerpts from the NHS’s ‘System Convening’ infringing publication, which was delivered at the ‘NHS Trusts and Primary Care Collaboration Knowledge Sharing Event’ on 16 October 2024 (recorded and published as a video). The exhibit shows:
- Slide titled “NHS Trusts and Primary Care Collaboration Knowledge Sharing Event”
- Slide titled “System Convening”
- Slide titled “Agenda”
- Slide titled “Continuing to Develop as a Partnership”
- Zoomed-in view of slide titled “Agenda”
- Zoomed-in view of slide titled “Continuing to Develop as a Partnership”

Indisputable proof of the violation is delineated next.
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his 2021 intellectual property.
The NHS (inclusive of its entities and people) did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, the NHS used Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property in its 2024 infringing publication.
NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used a significant volume of Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
NHS’s infringing 2024 publication failed to acknowledge Graffius' ownership of his respective content, thereby misleading others including the public into believing that it, the NHS, is the author and rightful owner of Graffius' intellectual property.
A review of the NHS’s 2024 publication uncovered a slew of infringing content.
Exhibit 3 is below and attached. It provides a side-by-side view of content from Graffius’ 2021 ‘Phases of Team Development’ copyrighted property and the NHS’s 2024 infringing publication.

As shown, the NHS blatantly infringed on Graffius’ copyright.
The NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted content word-for-word.
In what is reasonably considered to be the NHS’s demonstration of its knowing and willful infringement, the NHS author(s) of the infringing 2024 publication seemed to attempt to conceal their theft by slightly altering some words. The NHS author(s) localized some content (such as changing "socializing" to "socialising") and made a few other slight alterations (such as changing "&" to "and"). All of that is still infringement.
In addition to Exhibit 3, here’s a comparison of content from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property and what the NHS has in its infringing 2024 publication.
Forming Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Displaying eagerness”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Displaying eagerness”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Socializing”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Socialising”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Generally polite tone”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Generally polite tones”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Sticking to safe topics”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Sticking to safe topics”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Unclear about how one fits in”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Unclear about how one fits in”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Some anxiety & questioning”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Some anxiety and questioning”
Storming Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Some resistance”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Some resistance”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Lack of participation”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Lack of participation”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Conflict based on differences of feelings & opinions”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Conflict based on differences of feelings and opinions”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Competition”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Competition”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “High emotions”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “High emotions”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Starting to move towards group norms”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Starting to move towards group norms”
Norming Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Purpose & goals are well-understood”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Collectively understood purpose & goals”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “More confident”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Increased confidence”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Improved commitment”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Improved commitment”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Members are engaged and supportive”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Members are engaged”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Relief, lowered anxiety”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Relief and lowered anxiety”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Developing cohesion”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Greater cohesion”
Performing Phase: Characteristics and Strategies:
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “High motivation, trust & empathy”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “High motivation and empathy”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Individuals defer to team needs”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Individuals defer to partnership needs”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Effectively producing deliverables”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Consistent performance”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Consistent performance”
🟢 Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property includes: “Demonstrations of interdependence & self-management”
🔴 The NHS infringing 2024 publication includes: “Demonstration of interdependence and self management”
Conclusion
Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
The NHS did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, the NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used Graffius’ copyrighted 2021 property.
The NHS’s infringing 2024 publication used Graffius’ 2021 copyright content word-for-word.
In what is reasonably considered to be the NHS’s demonstration of it knowing and willful infringement, the NHS author(s) of the infringing 2024 publication seemed to attempt to conceal their theft by slightly altering some words. The NHS author(s) localized some content (such as changing "socializing" to "socialising") and made a few other slight alterations (such as changing "&" to "and"). All of that is still infringement.
The NHS’s 2024 infringing publication used a significant volume of Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property.
NHS’s infringing 2024 publication failed to acknowledge Graffius' ownership of his respective content, thereby misleading others including the public into believing that it, the NHS, is the author and rightful owner of Graffius' intellectual property.
The NHS’s infringement has damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ intellectual property.
The NHS’s use of Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted property was not ‘fair dealing’ nor ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
Copyright infringement is disgraceful, unprofessional, unethical, immoral, and illegal.
So long as the NHS’s infringing material exists anywhere, in any form, the NHS continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights. Accordingly, time is of the essence.
The NHS must immediately implement the following two (2) actions:
- Remove the Infringing Material. Electronic Versions: Immediately remove the infringing material (any and all publications/products with infringement) from digital platforms where it is advertised, promoted, sold, or distributed; this includes removing or disabling any online access to it. Physical Copies: If physical copies of the infringing material are in inventory or circulation, stop further distribution; recall any copies already distributed; destroy copies.
- Issue an Apology. Send an apology to Graffius via email at scott@scottgraffius.com. The apology will acknowledge the infringement and the steps taken (such as Action 1, above) to mitigate the situation. The apology will present the facts as they are—it will not "spin" or "downplay" the infringement.
Again, time is of the essence. Both actions must be fulfilled by 6:00 PM Pacific Time on Friday, 15 November 2024. By doing so, the NHS will demonstrate transparency, professionalism, integrity, accountability, and respect. However, if the NHS fails to do so, it will conversely convey a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, a lack of integrity, a lack of accountability, and a lack of respect.
Copyrights protect the intellectual property rights of creators, ensuring they receive recognition and compensation for their work, thus incentivizing creativity and innovation. Mr. Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
Graffius resides in the United States and the NHS is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. However, the United Kingdom and the United States have treaties regarding copyright: Berne (Paris) Dec. 5, 1887; Bilateral July 1, 18918; UCC Geneva Sept. 27, 1957; Phonograms Apr. 18, 1973; UCC Paris July 10, 1974; WTO Jan. 1, 1995; WCT Mar. 14, 2010; WPPT Mar. 14, 2010; VIP Jan. 1, 2021. Additionally, the United Kingdom has strong copyright laws. Copyright laws apply to this case.
Graffius expressly reserves his rights in this disturbing, damaging, and consequential matter.
Graffius communicated the preceding information to the NHS via email on 9 November 2024.
If there is an update to this article, it will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
Read on to learn:
• About the NHS,
• About Scott M. Graffius,
• How to Cite This Article,
• Post-Publication Notes,
• and more.


About the NHS
The National Health Service (NHS) is the publicly funded healthcare system in England, known for its commitment to providing universal healthcare free at the point of use. Financed largely through general taxation and National Insurance, the NHS is overseen by the Department of Health and Social Care, ensuring accessible healthcare for all legal residents of England, as well as residents from other parts of the UK.

About Scott M. Graffius

Scott M. Graffius is a global leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, an authority on temporal dynamics on social media platforms, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author, and an international public speaker.
See his bio to learn more.










About Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions

Shifting customer needs are common in today's marketplace. Businesses must be adaptive and responsive to change while delivering an exceptional customer experience to be competitive.
There are a variety of frameworks supporting the development of products and services, and most approaches fall into one of two broad categories: traditional or agile. Traditional practices such as waterfall engage sequential development, while agile involves iterative and incremental deliverables. Organizations are increasingly embracing agile to manage projects, and best meet their business needs of rapid response to change, fast delivery speed, and more.
With clear and easy to follow step-by-step instructions, Scott M. Graffius's award-winning Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions helps the reader:
- Implement and use the most popular agile framework―Scrum;
- Deliver products in short cycles with rapid adaptation to change, fast time-to-market, and continuous improvement; and
- Support innovation and drive competitive advantage.
Hailed by Literary Titan as “the book highlights the versatility of Scrum beautifully.”
Winner of 17 first place awards.
Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇱 Israel
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇳🇴 Norway
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 UAE
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States

About Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change

Thriving in today's marketplace frequently depends on making a transformation to become more agile. Those successful in the transition enjoy faster delivery speed and ROI, higher satisfaction, continuous improvement, and additional benefits.
Based on actual events, Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change provides a quick (60-90 minute) read about a successful agile transformation at a multinational entertainment and media company, told from the author's perspective as an agile coach.
The award-winning book by Scott M. Graffius is available in paperback and ebook/Kindle in the United States and around the world. Some links by country follow.
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇬🇷 Greece
- 🇮🇳 India
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
- 🇲🇽 Mexico
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇳🇿 New Zealand
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland
- 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States


How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, November 9). Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property was Employed by the NHS — the Largest Single-Payer Healthcare System in Europe. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/nhs-2024.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.24658.57289.


Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.24658.57289.
DOI link: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.24658.57289.


Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Update on 13 November 2024
As noted in the article, Graffius emailed details on the violation to the NHS including multiple departments and individuals. That email was sent on 9 November 2024.
Additionally, Graffius forwarded the 9 November 2024 email to Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of NHS England, on 13 November 2024.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 14 November 2024
Additionally, Graffius forwarded the 9 November 2024 email to Amanda Pritchard, NHS Chief Executive Officer, and Chris Whitty, NHS Chief Medical Officer, on 14 November 2024.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 15 November 2024
As detailed in the article, the NHS published their infringing video publication at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MesI1l7SAzY. The NHS removed their video on 15 November 2024. A screen shot is shown below.

Again, the article delineated undeniable proof that the NHS blatantly violated Graffius' intellectual property rights. While the NHS ultimately removed their infringing publication, it is shocking that the NHS failed to apologize to Graffius for their violation. Accordingly, the NHS strongly conveys a lack of transparency, a lack of professionalism, a lack of integrity, a lack of accountability, and a lack of respect. And this case remains open.
Graffius expressly reserves his rights in this disturbing, damaging, and consequential matter.
Any further updates will appear here.
Update on 20 November 2024
The NHS misrepresented Graffius’ copyrighted property as its own, spreading misinformation and violating intellectual property rights. As noted, the undeniable proof was provided to the NHS. That included multiple NHS departments and people such as
Amanda Pritchard, Chief Executive of NHS England.
To date, the NHS has not even apologized, demonstrating a lack of integrity, accountability, and respect. Accordingly, Graffius forwarded the undeniable proof of NHS’s violation to Pritchard’s superior on 20 November 2024. That’s Wes Streeting, the UK’s Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.
Any further updates will appear here.



Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts of content from the NHS, attributed to the NHS and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. NHS's content (excerpt for what was stolen from others) is the property of the NHS.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. Visit ScottGraffius.com.


Short Link for Article
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/nhs-2024


Copyright
Copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
Content on this site—including text, images, videos, and data—may not be used for training or input into any artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automatized learning systems, or published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the express written permission of Scott M. Graffius.

