#IPRights
Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property Was Utilized by Robert W. Malone, MD
06 June 2024
Introduction
Intellectual property (IP)—including copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, patents, and algorithms—is a strategic asset that provides significant value. IP rights ensure creators can benefit from their hard work, discovery, and innovation. Infringement can damage the marketability and value of the IP. IP rights are so important that IP theft is a federal crime.
Scott M. Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyrights and other IP rights.
This article covers the news that Robert W. Malone, MD used Graffius’ copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' intellectual property in his book. However:
- Malone did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ intellectual property;
- Malone used Graffius’ copyrighted content word-for-word;
- Malone used Graffius’ intellectual property commercially—in his book;
- Malone used a significant amount of Graffius' copyrighted property; and
- Malone did not cite, reference or otherwise attribute Graffius’ respective IP content to Graffius.
Ensuring the integrity of intellectual property is paramount to Graffius. He is resolute in protecting and enforcing his copyrights and other IP rights.
This article presents facts—including visuals and additional evidence—and a critical analysis of this consequential matter.
Overview of Graffius' Copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP
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’ IP. 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 and strategies for each phase.
Graffius published his 'Phases of Team Development' work as an article, among other mediums. The body of his article has text in typical — not bullet point — format. The typical format text by Graffius was used by Malone.
(For reference only, Graffius' same article includes a visual which incorporates a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase. The visual has text in bullet-point format. Again, the body of the article has text in typical — not bullet point — format; that typical format text by Graffius was used by Malone.)
Graffius' ‘Phases of Team Development’ IP is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
Graffius initially developed his material in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it. In this case, the applicable edition is 2021. An example is here and other locations.
(For reference only, the most current [2024] edition of his 'Phases of Team Development' is here.)
Here’s a macro/wide view of Graffius' respective 2021 IP.
Here’s another macro/wide view of Graffius' respective 2021 IP, showing the main body of the article.
Here’s a zoomed-in view of Graffius' respective 2021 IP, showing the applicable text.
Here’s a zoomed-in view of Graffius' respective 2021 IP, showing his copyright information.
Graffius' copyright ownership details are clearly noted: "Copyright © 2021 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."
Graffius presented his 2021 'Phases of Team Development' IP via multiple channels/platforms in 2021. Select examples include:
- Graffius’ blog (January 4, 2021) at: here.
- Graffius’ ResearchGate account (January 4, 2021) at: here.
- Graffius’ Twitter (now called X) account; one of many examples is (January 17, 2021) at: here.
- And some of Graffius’ appearances at conferences and other events; one example is Graffius’ talk at the IEEE’s ‘IEEE Day’ 2021 Event (October 5, 2021), a recording of his session is at: here.
Conference organizers, businesses, professional organizations, 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:
- 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.
His 'Phases of Team Development' IP is central and key to many of those sessions. Graffius' rate card and a listing of his engagements are here and here, respectively.
With an authorization/license from Graffius, many organizations have featured and used his 'Phases of Team Development' IP. Select examples include:
- Adobe,
- American Management Association,
- Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute,
- Boston University,
- Cisco,
- Deimos Aerospace,
- DevOps Institute,
- Ford Motor Company,
- Hasso Plattner Institute,
- IEEE,
- London South Bank University,
- Microsoft,
- New Zealand Government,
- Torrens University Australia,
- UK Sports Institute,
- University of Galway Ireland,
- U.S. National Park Service,
- U.S. Tennis Association,
- Virginia Tech,
- Yale University,
- and many others.
Robert W. Malone's Unauthorized, Word-for-Word, Commercial, Significant Amount, and Unattributed Use of Graffius' Intellectual Property
As already covered, Graffius' copyright ownership details are clearly noted: "Copyright © 2021 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."
Robert W. Malone, MD used Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property in his 2022 book, Lies My Gov’t Told Me: And the Better Future Coming. However:
- Malone did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ intellectual property;
- Malone used Graffius’ copyrighted content word-for-word;
- Malone used Graffius’ intellectual property commercially—in his book;
- Malone used a significant amount of Graffius' copyrighted property; and
- Malone did not cite, reference or otherwise attribute Graffius’ respective IP content to Graffius.
Evidence is archived. Visuals and additional information follows.
A side-by-side comparison is below. It shows Graffius' 2021 copyrighted content, on the topic of Forming. It also shows what Malone has in his 2022 book on the same topic: Malone uses Graffius' content word-for-word.
A side-by-side comparison is below. It shows Graffius' 2021 copyrighted content, on the topic of Storming. It also shows what Malone has in his 2022 book on the same topic: Malone uses Graffius' content word-for-word.
A side-by-side comparison is below. It shows Graffius' 2021 copyrighted content, on the topic of Norming. It also shows what Malone has in his 2022 book on the same topic: Malone uses Graffius' content word-for-word.
A side-by-side comparison is below. It shows Graffius' 2021 copyrighted content, on the topic of Performing. It also shows what Malone has in his 2022 book on the same topic: Malone uses Graffius' content word-for-word.
A comparison is also delineated next.
🟢 From Graffius' copyrighted 2021 'Phases of Team Development' IP, his content on Forming includes:
"include displaying eagerness, socializing, generally polite tone, sticking to safe topics, being unclear about how one fits in, and some anxiety and questioning."
🔴 From page 376 of Malone's 2022 book, Forming includes:
"include displaying eagerness, socializing, generally polite tone, sticking to safe topics, being unclear about how one fits in, and some anxiety and questioning."
🟢 From Graffius' copyrighted 2021 'Phases of Team Development' IP, his content on Storming includes:
"resistance, lack of participation, conflict related to differences of feelings and opinions, competition, high emotions, and starting to move towards group norms."
🔴 From page 376 of Malone's 2022 book, Storming includes:
"resistance, lack of participation, conflict related to differences of feelings and opinions, competition, high emotions, and starting to move towards group norms."
🟢 From Graffius' copyrighted 2021 'Phases of Team Development' IP, his content on Norming includes:
"improved sense of purpose and understanding of goals, higher confidence, improved commitment, team members are engaged and supportive, relief—lowered anxiety, and starting to develop cohesion."
🔴 From page 376 of Malone's 2022 book, Norming includes:
"improved sense of purpose and understanding of goals, higher confidence, improved commitment, team members are engaged and supportive, relief—lowered anxiety, and starting to develop cohesion."
🟢 From Graffius' copyrighted 2021 'Phases of Team Development' IP, his content on Performing includes:
"Characteristics of Performing include higher motivation, elevated trust and empathy, individuals typically deferring to the team's needs, effective production, consistent performance, and demonstrations of interdependence and self-management (also referred to as self-organization)."
🔴 From page 376 of Malone's 2022 book, Performing includes:
"Characteristics of Performing include higher motivation, elevated trust and empathy, individuals typically deferring to the team's needs, effective production, consistent performance, and demonstrations of interdependence and self-management (also referred to as self-organization)."
The indisputable proof shows that Malone used Graffius' copyrighted property.
Conclusion
Again, Graffius' copyright ownership details are clearly noted: "Copyright © 2021 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."
Robert W. Malone, MD used Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property in his book and:
- Malone did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ intellectual property;
- Malone used Graffius’ copyrighted content word-for-word;
- Malone used Graffius’ intellectual property commercially—in his book;
- Malone used a significant amount of Graffius' copyrighted property; and
- Malone did not cite, reference or otherwise attribute Graffius’ respective IP content to Graffius.
What Malone did was alarming and profoundly concerning. When others have done something not to Malone's liking or what he thought was wrong, Malone has been known to publicly criticize and characterize them as having "no moral compass." Examples are here and here.
Ensuring the integrity of intellectual property is paramount to Graffius. He is resolute in protecting and enforcing his copyrights and other IP rights.
This case is currently open.
Read on for additional information, including:
- About Scott M. Graffius;
- About Robert W. Malone;
- About Book by Robert W. Malone;
- About Copyright and Other Intellectual Property Rights;
- References/Sources; and
- How to Cite This Article.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, creator, multi-award-winning author, and international public speaker. Founder and CEO of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™, he has generated over $1.9 billion for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books, talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, National Academy of Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. National Park Service, U.S. Tennis Association, Yale University, and others. He delights audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile project management, AI, video game development, strategic alignment, the science of high performance teams, and more. To date, he's presented sessions at 91 conferences and other events across 25 countries. His full bio is available here.
About Robert W. Malone
Robert Wallace Malone is a physician and biochemist. His early work focused on mRNA technology, pharmaceuticals, and drug repurposing research. He's the author of the bestselling book, Lies My Gov't Told Me: And the Better Future Coming. Malone used Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property in his book. Malone did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ intellectual property (IP). Yet, Malone used Graffius’ IP word-for word; he used it commercially—in his book, for his financial gain; he used a significant amount of it; and he did not cite, reference or otherwise attribute Graffius’ respective IP content to Graffius.
About Book by Robert W. Malone
Malone, Robert W. (2022, December). Lies My Gov't Told Me: And the Better Future Coming. ISBN-13: 978-1510773240. New York City, New York: Skyhorse Publishing.
About Copyright and Other Intellectual Property Rights
For copyright/IP infringement cases, it is recommended that you consult a qualified attorney.
Infringement of copyright and other intellectual property (IP) rights is a deplorable act of intellectual theft, displaying a flagrant disregard for professionalism, morality, ethics, and the law. It undermines the hard work and innovation of others and is a disgraceful, unprofessional, dishonest, immoral, unethical, and illegal practice. IP rights are so important that IP theft is a federal crime.
To learn about copyrights, visit the United States Copyright Office’s website at https://www.copyright.gov.
The Reporting Intellectual Property Crime: A Guide for Victims of Copyright Infringement, Trademark Counterfeiting, and Trade Secret Theft publication by the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice is a good resource.
The Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Center coordinates the U.S. government’s response to intellectual property crimes. Visit their website at https://www.iprcenter.gov to learn more.
See the References/Sources section for additional information.
References/Sources
Select bibliography:
- Bartlett, Tom (2021, August 12). The Vaccine Scientist Spreading Vaccine Misinformation. The Atlantic. Available at: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/08/robert-malone-vaccine-inventor-vaccine-skeptic/619734/.
- Blaskovic, Andrew K.; Rusk, John-David; Parker, Victor C.; and Payne, Bryson R. (2022). Cybercrime and Intellectual Property Theft: An Analysis of Modern Digital Forensics. In book: Proceedings of the Future Technologies Conference (FTC) 2022, Volume 2. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-18458-1_36.
- Dolgin, Elie (2021, September 14). The Tangled History of mRNA Vaccines. Nature. Available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02483-w.
- Dyer, Jeff; Furr, Nathan; Lefrandt, Chris; and Howell, Taeya (2023, January 17). Innovation Depends on Intellectual Honesty. MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/why-innovation-depends-on-intellectual-honesty/.
- Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions (n.d.). Rate Card for 2023-2024. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/resources/Exceptional-PPM-and-PMO-Solutions-Rate-Card-for-2023-2024-v23110907.pdf.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2021, January 4). Phases of Team Development (Update for 2021). DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2021, January 4). Using Bruce Tuckman's Phases of Team Development to Help Your Team Grow and Advance: 2021 Update. Available at: https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html.
- Graffius, Scott M. (n.d.). Intellectual Property (IP). Available at: https://www.scottgraffius.com/intellectual-property.html.
- Graffius, Scott M. (n.d.). Public Speaker. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/publicspeaker.html.
- Hartline, Devlin (2016, September 26). Criminal Copyright Infringement is Crime of "Moral Turpitude." George Mason University Center for Intellectual Property x Innovation Policy. Available at: https://cip2.gmu.edu/2016/09/26/criminal-copyright-infringement-is-crime-of-moral-turpitude/.
- Huppert, Elizabeth; and Levine, Emma (2023, August 31). The Rise of Dishonest Leaders: Causes and Solutions. Academy of Management Perspectives, 37 (3). DOI: 10.5465/amp.2021.0063.
- Kenton, Will (2022, August 23). What Is a Whistleblower? Protections, Law, Importance, and Example. Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/w/whistleblower.asp.
- Malone, Robert W. (2023, August 8). Demonic Nihilism. Substack. Available at: https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/demonic-nihilism.
- Malone, Robert W. (2023, January 6). Project Veritas has Broken Pfizer's Gain-of-Function Research Program Wide Open. Substack. Available at: https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/project-veritas-has-broken-pfizers.
- Malone, Robert W. (2022, December). Lies My Gov't Told Me: And the Better Future Coming. ISBN-13: 978-1510773240. New York City, New York: Skyhorse Publishing.
- McGregor, Jena. (2017, May 15). More CEOs are Getting Forced Out for Ethical Violations. Washington Post. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2017/05/15/more-ceos-are-getting-forced-out-for-ethics-violations/.
- National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) (n.d.). About the Center. Available at: https://www.iprcenter.gov/about.
- Popomaronis, Tom (2020, August 20). These 11 Famously Disgraced CEOs Have Entered the Reputation Hall of Shame. Entrepreneur. Available at: https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/these-11-famously-disgraced-ceos-have-entered-the/354739.
- Rivera, Kristin; and Karlsson, Per-Ola (2017, June 6). CEOs Are Getting Fired for Ethical Lapses More Than They Used To. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2017/06/ceos-are-getting-fired-for-ethical-lapses-more-than-they-used-to.
- Smith, Isaac H.; Kouchaki, Maryam; and Wareham, Justin (2021, April 14). The Price Leaders Pay for Cutting Ethical Corners. MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/the-price-leaders-pay-for-cutting-ethical-corners/.
- Steffen, Thomas (2019, May 24). For CEOs, Integrity Is the Best Policy. Yale School of Management. Available at: https://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/for-ceos-integrity-is-the-best-policy.
- Sterne, Robert; and Chaplick, Trevor (2005, February). Why Directors Must Take Responsibility for Intellectual Property. Intellectual Asset Management Magazine. Available at: https://www.wsgr.com/PDFSearch/IP_RESPONSIBILTY.pdf.
- Stim, Richard (2024). Patent, Copyright & Trademark: An Intellectual Property Desk Reference (18th Edition). Berkeley, California: Nolo.
- Stubben, Stephen; and Welch Kyle (2018, November 14). Whistleblowers Keep Companies Healthy. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2018/11/research-whistleblowers-are-a-sign-of-healthy-companies.
- Thomson Reuters (2022, December 16). Copyright Litigation 101. Available at: https://legal.thomsonreuters.com/blog/copyright-litigation-101/.
- United States Copyright Office (USCO) (n.d.). Can I Use Someone Else's Work? Can Someone Else Use Mine? (Excerpt: "In cases of willful infringement for profit, the U.S. Attorney may initiate a criminal investigation.") Available at: https://copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html.
- United States Copyright Office (USCO) (n.d.). Welcome to the U.S. Copyright Office. Available at: https://www.copyright.gov.
- United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (n.d.). Intellectual Property Theft and Commercial Fraud. Available at: https://www.dhs.gov/hsi/investigate/intellectual-property-and-commercial-fraud.
- United States Department of Homeland Security (US DHS) (n.d.). Intellectual Property Rights. Available at: https://www.dhs.gov/intellectual-property-rights.
- United States Department of Justice (DOJ) (n.d.). Reporting Intellectual Property Crime: A Guide for Victims of Copyright Infringement, Trademark Counterfeiting, and Trade Secret Theft (Third Edition). Available at: https://www.justice.gov/criminal/criminal-ccips/file/891011/dl.
- United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Inspector General (OIG) (n.d.). Whistleblower Rights and Protections. Available at: https://oig.justice.gov/hotline/whistleblower-protection.
- United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) (2013, July 24). Copyright Policy, Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy. Available at: https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/news/publications/copyrightgreenpaper.pdf.
- Vitasek, Kate (2022, November 29). The Role of Honesty in Success (and Why Cutting Corners is a Bad Idea). Forbes. Available at: https://forbes.com/sites/katevitasek/2022/11/29/the-role-of-honesty-in-success-and-why-cutting-corners-is-a-bad-idea/.
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, June 6). Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property Was Utilized by Robert W. Malone, MD. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/ip-theft.html.
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.
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- 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
- 🇫🇷 France
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- 🇦🇪 UAE
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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.
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The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/theft-ip
© Copyright 2024 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.
Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property
16 May 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.
Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' Copyrighted
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 (4 January 2021 edition) is shown below [Exhibit 1] and is available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246. 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."
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.
Pudgy Penguins CEO 'Luca Netz' (Luca Schnetzler) Used
Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property Without Permission or Credit
Luca Schnetzler, who goes by 'Luca Netz,' is the CEO of Pudgy Penguins. As shown below and delineated later in this article, Netz posted content on X which used Graffius' copyrighted property. He did not request nor receive permission, and he did not attribute the IP to Graffius. Netz's use violated Graffius' intellectual property rights. Netz posted the infringing material on 3 May 2024 at https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631.
As shown above, Netz's post included two words and an image. The two words were "Performing Era" and the image included Graffius' IP.
A zoomed-in view of the image is below.
Copyright owner Scott M. Graffius discovered the infringement of his intellectual property on 11 May 2024. That day, Graffius notified Netz about the infringement.
Netz failed to respond on this serious matter. For that reason, Graffius sent follow up communications to Netz on his infringing material. Excerpts follow.
—————
—————
—————
The indisputable proof shows that Netz's material used Graffius' copyrighted property.
Again, Graffius sent follow up communications to Netz on his infringing material.
On May 16, 2024, Netz not only deleted the infringing post but also blocked Graffius, the very individual whose intellectual property was used without permission or attribution. This action seemingly demonstrated a lack of remorse and an attempt to evade accountability for violating Graffius' intellectual property rights. Netz's move was very uncool.
X’s 'that post has been deleted' message is shown below.
X's 'You're blocked' message is shown below.
Conclusion
Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' is registered with the US Copyright Office.
Pudgy Penguins CEO 'Luca Netz' (Luca Schnetzler) did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius' intellectual property.
Yet, Netz used Graffius' IP and without attribution. Accordingly, Netz's material wrongly led others to falsely believe that Netz is the author and owner of Graffius' respective IP.
Netz's use damaged the marketability and value of Graffius' copyrighted property.
For the aforementioned reasons, Netz's use was not 'fair use' nor otherwise allowed.
After Graffius informed Netz of the violation, Netz eventually deleted his infringing post but also blocked Graffius, the very individual whose intellectual property was used without permission or attribution. Netz's action seemingly demonstrated a lack of remorse and an attempt to evade accountability for violating Graffius' intellectual property rights. Netz's move was very uncool.
Intellectual property (IP) is a strategic asset that provides significant value. IP infringement is disgraceful, dishonorable, unprofessional, immoral, unethical, and illegal. IP rights are so important that IP theft is a federal crime.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other IP rights.
If Graffius opts to take legal action against Netz for his violation of Graffius' copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
Read on see the subsequent section of this article:
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, creator, multi-award-winning author, and international public speaker. Founder and CEO of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™, he has generated over $1.9 billion for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books, talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, National Academy of Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. National Park Service, U.S. Tennis Association, Yale University, and others. He delights audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile project management, AI, video game development, strategic alignment, the science of high performance teams, and more. To date, he's presented sessions at 90 conferences and other events across 25 countries.
His full bio is available here.
About Luca Schnetzler
Luca Schnetzler (also known as 'Luca Netz') is the Chief Executive Officer of Pudgy Penguins.
About Pudgy Penguins
LSLTTT Holdings, Inc. is doing business as (DBA) "Pudgy Penguins" — a non-fungible token (NFT) collection that also doubles as a web3 intellectual property (IP) company. Based on information from CrunchBase and other sources, Pudgy Penguins' investors include 1kx, Adam Winnick, Big Brain Holdings, Bobby Ong, CRIT Ventures, co-founders of LayerZero Labs (Ryan Zarick and Bryan Pellegrino), Kasey Kasey, Kronos Research, Old Fashion Research, Peter Yuan Pan, and MetaVision International. There may be additional investors.
About Copyright and Other Intellectual Property Rights
For copyright/IP infringement cases, it is recommended that you consult a qualified attorney.
Intellectual Property (IP) is a strategic asset that provides significant value. IP infringement is disgraceful, dishonorable, unprofessional, immoral, unethical, and illegal. IP rights are so important that IP theft is a federal crime.
The U.S. Copyright Office informs that "In cases of willful infringement for profit, the U.S. Attorney may initiate a criminal investigation."
Visit the website of the U.S. Copyright Office at https://www.copyright.gov to learn more about copyrights.
The Reporting Intellectual Property Crime: A Guide for Victims of Copyright Infringement, Trademark Counterfeiting, and Trade Secret Theft publication by the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice is a good resource.
The Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Center coordinates the U.S. government’s response to intellectual property crimes. Visit their website at https://www.iprcenter.gov to learn more.
See the References/Sources section for additional information.
References/Sources
Select bibliography:
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, May 16). Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/ip-rights.html.
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.
Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
The initial working title for this article was 'Intellectual Property (IP) Theft is a Federal Crime - Featuring a Real Example of IP Infringement and What the IP Owner Did to Enforce His Rights and Protect His Property.' It was updated to 'Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property.'
This serious case is not yet resolved. If Graffius opts to take legal action against Netz for his violation of Graffius' copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
Any further updates will appear in this section.
Content Acknowledgements
This article used limited excerpts from Netz which demonstrate or are related to the infringement, attributed and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis.
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/ip-2024
© Copyright 2024 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.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' Copyrighted
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 (4 January 2021 edition) is shown below [Exhibit 1] and is available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246. 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."
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.
Pudgy Penguins CEO 'Luca Netz' (Luca Schnetzler) Used
Scott M. Graffius’ Intellectual Property Without Permission or Credit
Luca Schnetzler, who goes by 'Luca Netz,' is the CEO of Pudgy Penguins. As shown below and delineated later in this article, Netz posted content on X which used Graffius' copyrighted property. He did not request nor receive permission, and he did not attribute the IP to Graffius. Netz's use violated Graffius' intellectual property rights. Netz posted the infringing material on 3 May 2024 at https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631.
As shown above, Netz's post included two words and an image. The two words were "Performing Era" and the image included Graffius' IP.
A zoomed-in view of the image is below.
Copyright owner Scott M. Graffius discovered the infringement of his intellectual property on 11 May 2024. That day, Graffius notified Netz about the infringement.
Netz failed to respond on this serious matter. For that reason, Graffius sent follow up communications to Netz on his infringing material. Excerpts follow.
[From Scott M. Graffius to Luca Schnetzler AKA Luca Netz]
Intellectual Property (IP) provides significant value. I maintain, enforce, and protect my copyright and other IP rights.
My 'Phases of Team Development' IP is registered with the United States Copyright Office.
Infringement of my 'Phases of Team Development' IP is shown by Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Schnetzler (known as "Luca Netz") here: https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631.
(Changing a word here or there does not work.) The infringer did not request nor receive permission to use my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development.' Additionally, their use did not provide attribution to me. As such, they're falsely leading others to believe that they're the creator and owner of my IP. More info follows.
—————
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and my first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, I created my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development.' It’s a unique perspective and visual conveying the five phases of team development — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning. It’s also inclusive of a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase.
Project Managers, Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, DevOps Leads, and other leaders can apply the information in my ‘Phases of Team Development’ to help handle challenges or issues experienced by teams. By doing so, they'll advance the teams' (and their own) happiness, productivity, and success.
I initially developed my material in 2008, and I periodically refresh it. I’m honored that businesses, scientists, journalists, professional associations, government agencies, universities, and others around the world have featured my 'Phases of Team Development' IP. Select examples include Adobe, American Management Association, Boston University, Cisco, Ford, Hasso Plattner Institute, IEEE, London South Bank University, Microsoft, Torrens University Australia, UC San Diego, U.S. National Park Service, U.S. Tennis Association, Yale University, and many others.
—————
Infringement of my registered copyright is shown by Pudgy Penguins (@PudgyPenguins) CEO Luca Schnetzler (known as "Luca Netz" - @LucaNetz) here: https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631.
(Changing a word here or there does not work.) The infringer did not request nor receive permission to use my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development.' Additionally, their use did not provide attribution to me. As such, they're falsely leading others to believe that they're the creator and owner of my IP. Some of the MANY examples follow.
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Displaying eagerness"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Displaying eagerness"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Generally polite tone"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Generally polite"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Sticking to safe topics"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Sticking to safe topics"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Unclear about how one fits in"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Unclear about how one fits in"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Some anxiety & questioning"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Forming includes:
"Some anxiety & questioning"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Strategies under Forming includes:
"'Taking the 'lead'"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Strategies under Forming includes:
"'Taking the 'lead'"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Being highly visible"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Being highly visible"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Facilitating introductions"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Facilitating introductions"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Providing the 'big picture'"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Providing the big picture"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Establishing clear expectations"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Establishing clear expectations"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Communicating success criteria"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Strategies under Forming includes:
"Communicating success criteria"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Performing includes:
"High motivation, trust & empathy"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Performing includes:
"High motivation, trust & empathy"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Performing includes:
"Individuals defer to team needs"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Performing includes:
"Individuals defer to team needs"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Performing includes:
"Improved commitment"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Performing includes:
"Improved commitment"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Shift to process orientation"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Shift to process orientation"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Sadness"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Sadness"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Recognition of team & individual efforts"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Recognition of team and individual efforts"
🟢 From my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP (2021 edition, https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Disbanding"
🔴 From the infringement of my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' IP shown by Luca Netz (https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631), Characteristics under Adjourning includes:
"Disbanding"
The preceding are just some of the many examples.
—————
To wrap up, infringement of my registered copyright is shown by Pudgy Penguins (@PudgyPenguins) CEO Luca Schnetzler (known as "Luca Netz" - @LucaNetz) here: https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631.
(Changing a word here or there does not work.) The infringer did not request nor receive permission to use my copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development.' Additionally, their use did not provide attribution to me. As such, they're falsely leading others to believe that they're the creator and owner of my IP.
Copyright infringement is dishonorable, disgraceful, unprofessional, immoral, unethical, and illegal.
The infringement has damaged the marketability and value of my 'Phases of Team Development' IP.
The indisputable proof shows that Netz's material used Graffius' copyrighted property.
Again, Graffius sent follow up communications to Netz on his infringing material.
On May 16, 2024, Netz not only deleted the infringing post but also blocked Graffius, the very individual whose intellectual property was used without permission or attribution. This action seemingly demonstrated a lack of remorse and an attempt to evade accountability for violating Graffius' intellectual property rights. Netz's move was very uncool.
X’s 'that post has been deleted' message is shown below.
X's 'You're blocked' message is shown below.
Conclusion
Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' is registered with the US Copyright Office.
Pudgy Penguins CEO 'Luca Netz' (Luca Schnetzler) did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius' intellectual property.
Yet, Netz used Graffius' IP and without attribution. Accordingly, Netz's material wrongly led others to falsely believe that Netz is the author and owner of Graffius' respective IP.
Netz's use damaged the marketability and value of Graffius' copyrighted property.
For the aforementioned reasons, Netz's use was not 'fair use' nor otherwise allowed.
After Graffius informed Netz of the violation, Netz eventually deleted his infringing post but also blocked Graffius, the very individual whose intellectual property was used without permission or attribution. Netz's action seemingly demonstrated a lack of remorse and an attempt to evade accountability for violating Graffius' intellectual property rights. Netz's move was very uncool.
Intellectual property (IP) is a strategic asset that provides significant value. IP infringement is disgraceful, dishonorable, unprofessional, immoral, unethical, and illegal. IP rights are so important that IP theft is a federal crime.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other IP rights.
If Graffius opts to take legal action against Netz for his violation of Graffius' copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
Read on see the subsequent section of this article:
- About Scott M. Graffius,
- About Luca Schnetzler,
- About Pudgy Penguins,
- About Copyright and Other Intellectual Property Rights,
- References/Sources,
- How to Cite This Article,
- and more.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, creator, multi-award-winning author, and international public speaker. Founder and CEO of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™, he has generated over $1.9 billion for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books, talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, National Academy of Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. National Park Service, U.S. Tennis Association, Yale University, and others. He delights audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile project management, AI, video game development, strategic alignment, the science of high performance teams, and more. To date, he's presented sessions at 90 conferences and other events across 25 countries.
His full bio is available here.
About Luca Schnetzler
Luca Schnetzler (also known as 'Luca Netz') is the Chief Executive Officer of Pudgy Penguins.
About Pudgy Penguins
LSLTTT Holdings, Inc. is doing business as (DBA) "Pudgy Penguins" — a non-fungible token (NFT) collection that also doubles as a web3 intellectual property (IP) company. Based on information from CrunchBase and other sources, Pudgy Penguins' investors include 1kx, Adam Winnick, Big Brain Holdings, Bobby Ong, CRIT Ventures, co-founders of LayerZero Labs (Ryan Zarick and Bryan Pellegrino), Kasey Kasey, Kronos Research, Old Fashion Research, Peter Yuan Pan, and MetaVision International. There may be additional investors.
About Copyright and Other Intellectual Property Rights
For copyright/IP infringement cases, it is recommended that you consult a qualified attorney.
Intellectual Property (IP) is a strategic asset that provides significant value. IP infringement is disgraceful, dishonorable, unprofessional, immoral, unethical, and illegal. IP rights are so important that IP theft is a federal crime.
The U.S. Copyright Office informs that "In cases of willful infringement for profit, the U.S. Attorney may initiate a criminal investigation."
Visit the website of the U.S. Copyright Office at https://www.copyright.gov to learn more about copyrights.
The Reporting Intellectual Property Crime: A Guide for Victims of Copyright Infringement, Trademark Counterfeiting, and Trade Secret Theft publication by the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice is a good resource.
The Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Center coordinates the U.S. government’s response to intellectual property crimes. Visit their website at https://www.iprcenter.gov to learn more.
See the References/Sources section for additional information.
References/Sources
Select bibliography:
- Allyn, Bobby (2019, May 20). Top Reason For CEO Departures Among Largest Companies Is Now Misconduct, Study Finds. NPR. Available at: https://www.npr.org/2019/05/20/725108825/top-reason-for-ceo-departures-among-largest-companies-is-now-misconduct-study-fi.
- Blaskovic, Andrew K.; Rusk, John-David; Parker, Victor C.; and Payne, Bryson R. (2022). Cybercrime and Intellectual Property Theft: An Analysis of Modern Digital Forensics. In book: Proceedings of the Future Technologies Conference (FTC) 2022, Volume 2. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-18458-1_36.
- CrunchBase (n.d.). Seed Round – Pudgy Penguins. Available at: https://www.crunchbase.com/funding_round/pudgy-penguins-seed--09980d4f.
- Dyer, Jeff; Furr, Nathan; Lefrandt, Chris; and Howell, Taeya (2023, January 17). Innovation Depends on Intellectual Honesty. MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/why-innovation-depends-on-intellectual-honesty/.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2021, January 4). Phases of Team Development (Update for 2021). DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246.
- Graffius, Scott M. (2021, January 4). Using Bruce Tuckman's Phases of Team Development to Help Your Team Grow and Advance: 2021 Update. Available at: https://www.scottgraffius.com/blog/files/team-21.html.
- Graffius, Scott M. (n.d.). Intellectual Property (IP). Available at: https://www.scottgraffius.com/intellectual-property.html.
- Hartline, Devlin (2016, September 26). Criminal Copyright Infringement is Crime of "Moral Turpitude." George Mason University Center for Intellectual Property x Innovation Policy. Available at: https://cip2.gmu.edu/2016/09/26/criminal-copyright-infringement-is-crime-of-moral-turpitude/.
- Huppert, Elizabeth; and Levine, Emma (2023, August 31). The Rise of Dishonest Leaders: Causes and Solutions. Academy of Management Perspectives, 37 (3). DOI: 10.5465/amp.2021.0063.
- Kenton, Will (2022, August 23). What Is a Whistleblower? Protections, Law, Importance, and Example. Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/w/whistleblower.asp.
- McGregor, Jena. (2017, May 15). More CEOs are Getting Forced Out for Ethical Violations. Washington Post. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2017/05/15/more-ceos-are-getting-forced-out-for-ethics-violations/.
- National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) (n.d.). About the Center. Available at: https://www.iprcenter.gov/about.
- Popomaronis, Tom (2020, August 20). These 11 Famously Disgraced CEOs Have Entered the Reputation Hall of Shame. Entrepreneur. Available at: https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/these-11-famously-disgraced-ceos-have-entered-the/354739.
- Pudgy Penguins (n.d.). Available at: https://pudgypenguins.com.
- Rivera, Kristin; and Karlsson, Per-Ola (2017, June 6). CEOs Are Getting Fired for Ethical Lapses More Than They Used To. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2017/06/ceos-are-getting-fired-for-ethical-lapses-more-than-they-used-to.
- Sahadi, Jeanne (2019, May 2). When Good Executives Go Bad. CNN Business. Available at: https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/02/success/executives-behaving-badly/index.html.
- Schnetzler, Luca (2024, May 3). On May 3, 2024, @LucaNetz (Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Schnetzler AKA Luca Netz) posted https://x.com/LucaNetz/status/1786418972323168631 on X (formerly known as Twitter). Content in that post infringed on the registered copyright of Scott M. Graffius. On May 16, 2024, Luca Schnetzler AKA Luca Netz deleted his post.
- Smith, Isaac H.; Kouchaki, Maryam; and Wareham, Justin (2021, April 14). The Price Leaders Pay for Cutting Ethical Corners. MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/the-price-leaders-pay-for-cutting-ethical-corners/.
- Steffen, Thomas (2019, May 24). For CEOs, Integrity Is the Best Policy. Yale School of Management. Available at: https://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/for-ceos-integrity-is-the-best-policy.
- Sterne, Robert; and Chaplick, Trevor (2005, February). Why Directors Must Take Responsibility for Intellectual Property. Intellectual Asset Management Magazine. Available at: https://www.wsgr.com/PDFSearch/IP_RESPONSIBILTY.pdf.
- Stim, Richard (2024). Patent, Copyright & Trademark: An Intellectual Property Desk Reference (18th Edition). Berkeley, California: Nolo.
- Stubben, Stephen; and Welch Kyle (2018, November 14). Whistleblowers Keep Companies Healthy. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2018/11/research-whistleblowers-are-a-sign-of-healthy-companies.
- Thomson Reuters (2022, December 16). Copyright Litigation 101. Available at: https://legal.thomsonreuters.com/blog/copyright-litigation-101/.
- United States Copyright Office (USCO) (n.d.). Can I Use Someone Else's Work? Can Someone Else Use Mine? (Excerpt: "In cases of willful infringement for profit, the U.S. Attorney may initiate a criminal investigation.") Available at: https://copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html.
- United States Copyright Office (USCO) (n.d.). Welcome to the U.S. Copyright Office. Available at: https://www.copyright.gov.
- United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (n.d.). Intellectual Property Theft and Commercial Fraud. Available at: https://www.dhs.gov/hsi/investigate/intellectual-property-and-commercial-fraud.
- United States Department of Homeland Security (US DHS) (n.d.). Intellectual Property Rights. Available at: https://www.dhs.gov/intellectual-property-rights.
- United States Department of Justice (DOJ) (n.d.). Reporting Intellectual Property Crime: A Guide for Victims of Copyright Infringement, Trademark Counterfeiting, and Trade Secret Theft (Third Edition). Available at: https://www.justice.gov/criminal/criminal-ccips/file/891011/dl.
- United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Inspector General (OIG) (n.d.). Whistleblower Rights and Protections. Available at: https://oig.justice.gov/hotline/whistleblower-protection.
- United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) (2013, July 24). Copyright Policy, Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy. Available at: https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/news/publications/copyrightgreenpaper.pdf.
- Vitasek, Kate (2022, November 29). The Role of Honesty in Success (and Why Cutting Corners is a Bad Idea). Forbes. Available at: https://forbes.com/sites/katevitasek/2022/11/29/the-role-of-honesty-in-success-and-why-cutting-corners-is-a-bad-idea/.
- Willmer, Sabrina; and Weinstein, Austin (2023, April 18). Tech Firms are Using NDAs to Illegally Muzzle Whistleblowers. Fortune. Available at: https://fortune.com/2023/04/18/tech-nda-illegally-muzzle-whistleblowers-sec/.
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, May 16). Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/ip-rights.html.
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.
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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.
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Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
The initial working title for this article was 'Intellectual Property (IP) Theft is a Federal Crime - Featuring a Real Example of IP Infringement and What the IP Owner Did to Enforce His Rights and Protect His Property.' It was updated to 'Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property.'
This serious case is not yet resolved. If Graffius opts to take legal action against Netz for his violation of Graffius' copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
Any further updates will appear in this section.
Content Acknowledgements
This article used limited excerpts from Netz which demonstrate or are related to the infringement, attributed and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis.
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/ip-2024
© Copyright 2024 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.
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
TurningWest's 'Trial'
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)—infringes on the intellectual property rights of others, results in misinformation, and often violates copyright.
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 applicable to this case (2021 edition) is shown below [Exhibit 1] and is available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246.
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.”
Again, this 2021 edition is referenced because it is the one applicable to this case.
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:
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 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the globe. Examples include:
Details on the Plagiarism
Note: All evidence has been preserved.
A whistleblower tip informed Scott M. Graffius that a video is using Graffius’ intellectual property. The video was identified as:
Exhibit 2 is shown below. It provides an overview, including thumbnail images from the the video.
Graffius reviewed TurningWest’s 2024 video and saw numerous examples of material—content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development—plagiarized from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property.
TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. Yet, TurningWest used it (some with slight rewording such as changing "recognizing" to "recognize" and similar, which remains plagiarism) commercially and without attribution.
Again, 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). TurningWest’s presentation plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ’Phases of Team Development,’ violating his intellectual property.
Instances of TurningWest changing a word from a section from Graffius’ copyrighted property that’s in the present participle form (such as "recognizing") to the present simple form (such as "recognize") or otherwise similar slight rewording is still stealing Graffius' words and ideas; it is still plagiarism. The combination of such rewording and lack of attribution may be seen as a signal of intent to deceive. Regardless of whether the infringement was intentional or "inadvertent," the actions misrepresent the originator of the words and ideas, which is at the heart of plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
Graffius informed TurningWest and TurningWest’s Steve Goodwin about the infringement. An excerpt: "An authorized example of my copyrighted property is at https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246 and other locations. Steven Goodwin and Megan Sands of TurningWest's presentation used some of my intellectual property ... with no attribution to me whatsoever. By doing so, they are falsely leading others to wrongly believe that they are the authors and owners of my intellectual property. Uncool."
Here’s a reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "I have never heard of you before and have never seen any of your materials. This is very basic information and foundational to all team formation efforts." As shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Here’s another reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "Who are you and what kind of scam are you trying to pull? I have NEVER heard your name before nor have I EVER seen one word of your materials." Again, as shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Additionally, by TurningWest not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
When Graffius reviewed the TurningWest's infringing 2024 video, he saw that content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development was teeming with plagiarized material from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. The indisputable proof follows.
Here's Exhibit 3. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Forming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Exhibit 4 is below. It provides diligent, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Storming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows more examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 5. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Norming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 6. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Performing phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 7. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Adjourning phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Each of the five immediately preceding exhibits (Exhibit 3, Exhibit 4, Exhibit 5, Exhibit 6, and Exhibit 7) showed examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words and ideas as their own. Individually, the exhibits are compelling. Collectively, they form an irrefutable, damning picture of TurningWest's plagiarism.
Given the indisputable facts, TurningWest’s Goodwin must now reflect on his earlier reactions with regret, as they have cast him in an entirely unfavorable light.
Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' is registered with the US Copyright Office. TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius' property. Yet, TurningWest used Graffius' property commercially and without attribution. TurningWest's actions are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
TurningWest's plagiarism damaged the marketability and value of Graffius' copyrighted property. Further, by not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Plagiarism often involves the violation of copyright, and copyright infringement is so serious that it is a Federal crime. For many reasons including facts covered in this article, if Graffius opts to take legal action against TurningWest for their violation of his copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
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, October 8). TurningWest's Trial. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/turningwest.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.19899.84008.
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 TurningWest has failed to remove their infringing material. Accordingly, TurningWest knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from TurningWest, attributed to TurningWest and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. TurningWest name, mark, and content (except for what was plagiarized) are the property of TurningWest.
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.
A PDF of this article is here
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/turningwest
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)—infringes on the intellectual property rights of others, results in misinformation, and often violates copyright.
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 applicable to this case (2021 edition) is shown below [Exhibit 1] and is available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246.
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.”
Again, this 2021 edition is referenced because it is the one applicable to this case.
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:
- 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 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the globe. 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,
- IEEE,
- James Madison University,
- 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,
- World Resources Institute,
- Yale University,
- and many others.
Details on the Plagiarism
Note: All evidence has been preserved.
A whistleblower tip informed Scott M. Graffius that a video is using Graffius’ intellectual property. The video was identified as:
- Publisher of video: TurningWest
- Date of publication: 16 September 2024
- Title of video: ‘9 13 24 Mastering Team Dev webinar’ (note: the preceding is what is listed on YouTube as the title; however, for reference, the video itself notes that the title is: 'Mastering Team Development: Key Modules and Performance Examples')
- Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7qldELhp7s
Exhibit 2 is shown below. It provides an overview, including thumbnail images from the the video.
Graffius reviewed TurningWest’s 2024 video and saw numerous examples of material—content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development—plagiarized from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property.
TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. Yet, TurningWest used it (some with slight rewording such as changing "recognizing" to "recognize" and similar, which remains plagiarism) commercially and without attribution.
Again, 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). TurningWest’s presentation plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ’Phases of Team Development,’ violating his intellectual property.
Instances of TurningWest changing a word from a section from Graffius’ copyrighted property that’s in the present participle form (such as "recognizing") to the present simple form (such as "recognize") or otherwise similar slight rewording is still stealing Graffius' words and ideas; it is still plagiarism. The combination of such rewording and lack of attribution may be seen as a signal of intent to deceive. Regardless of whether the infringement was intentional or "inadvertent," the actions misrepresent the originator of the words and ideas, which is at the heart of plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
Graffius informed TurningWest and TurningWest’s Steve Goodwin about the infringement. An excerpt: "An authorized example of my copyrighted property is at https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246 and other locations. Steven Goodwin and Megan Sands of TurningWest's presentation used some of my intellectual property ... with no attribution to me whatsoever. By doing so, they are falsely leading others to wrongly believe that they are the authors and owners of my intellectual property. Uncool."
Here’s a reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "I have never heard of you before and have never seen any of your materials. This is very basic information and foundational to all team formation efforts." As shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Here’s another reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "Who are you and what kind of scam are you trying to pull? I have NEVER heard your name before nor have I EVER seen one word of your materials." Again, as shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Additionally, by TurningWest not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
When Graffius reviewed the TurningWest's infringing 2024 video, he saw that content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development was teeming with plagiarized material from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. The indisputable proof follows.
Here's Exhibit 3. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Forming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Exhibit 4 is below. It provides diligent, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Storming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows more examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 5. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Norming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 6. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Performing phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 7. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Adjourning phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Each of the five immediately preceding exhibits (Exhibit 3, Exhibit 4, Exhibit 5, Exhibit 6, and Exhibit 7) showed examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words and ideas as their own. Individually, the exhibits are compelling. Collectively, they form an irrefutable, damning picture of TurningWest's plagiarism.
Given the indisputable facts, TurningWest’s Goodwin must now reflect on his earlier reactions with regret, as they have cast him in an entirely unfavorable light.
Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' is registered with the US Copyright Office. TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius' property. Yet, TurningWest used Graffius' property commercially and without attribution. TurningWest's actions are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
TurningWest's plagiarism damaged the marketability and value of Graffius' copyrighted property. Further, by not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Plagiarism often involves the violation of copyright, and copyright infringement is so serious that it is a Federal crime. For many reasons including facts covered in this article, if Graffius opts to take legal action against TurningWest for their violation of his copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
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, October 8). TurningWest's Trial. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/turningwest.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.19899.84008.
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 TurningWest has failed to remove their infringing material. Accordingly, TurningWest knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from TurningWest, attributed to TurningWest and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. TurningWest name, mark, and content (except for what was plagiarized) are the property of TurningWest.
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.
A PDF of this article is here
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/turningwest
TurningWest's 'Trial'
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)—infringes on the intellectual property rights of others, results in misinformation, and often violates copyright.
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 applicable to this case (2021 edition) is shown below [Exhibit 1] and is available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246.
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.”
Again, this 2021 edition is referenced because it is the one applicable to this case.
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:
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 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the globe. Examples include:
Details on the Plagiarism
Note: All evidence has been preserved.
A whistleblower tip informed Scott M. Graffius that a video is using Graffius’ intellectual property. The video was identified as:
Exhibit 2 is shown below. It provides an overview, including thumbnail images from the the video.
Graffius reviewed TurningWest’s 2024 video and saw numerous examples of material—content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development—plagiarized from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property.
TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. Yet, TurningWest used it (some with slight rewording such as changing "recognizing" to "recognize" and similar, which remains plagiarism) commercially and without attribution.
Again, 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). TurningWest’s presentation plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ’Phases of Team Development,’ violating his intellectual property.
Instances of TurningWest changing a word from a section from Graffius’ copyrighted property that’s in the present participle form (such as "recognizing") to the present simple form (such as "recognize") or otherwise similar slight rewording is still stealing Graffius' words and ideas; it is still plagiarism. The combination of such rewording and lack of attribution may be seen as a signal of intent to deceive. Regardless of whether the infringement was intentional or "inadvertent," the actions misrepresent the originator of the words and ideas, which is at the heart of plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
Graffius informed TurningWest and TurningWest’s Steve Goodwin about the infringement. An excerpt: "An authorized example of my copyrighted property is at https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246 and other locations. Steven Goodwin and Megan Sands of TurningWest's presentation used some of my intellectual property ... with no attribution to me whatsoever. By doing so, they are falsely leading others to wrongly believe that they are the authors and owners of my intellectual property. Uncool."
Here’s a reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "I have never heard of you before and have never seen any of your materials. This is very basic information and foundational to all team formation efforts." As shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Here’s another reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "Who are you and what kind of scam are you trying to pull? I have NEVER heard your name before nor have I EVER seen one word of your materials." Again, as shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Additionally, by TurningWest not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
When Graffius reviewed the TurningWest's infringing 2024 video, he saw that content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development was teeming with plagiarized material from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. The indisputable proof follows.
Here's Exhibit 3. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Forming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Exhibit 4 is below. It provides diligent, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Storming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows more examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 5. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Norming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 6. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Performing phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 7. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Adjourning phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Each of the five immediately preceding exhibits (Exhibit 3, Exhibit 4, Exhibit 5, Exhibit 6, and Exhibit 7) showed examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words and ideas as their own. Individually, the exhibits are compelling. Collectively, they form an irrefutable, damning picture of TurningWest's plagiarism.
Given the indisputable facts, TurningWest’s Goodwin must now reflect on his earlier reactions with regret, as they have cast him in an entirely unfavorable light.
Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' is registered with the US Copyright Office. TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius' property. Yet, TurningWest used Graffius' property commercially and without attribution. TurningWest's actions are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
TurningWest's plagiarism damaged the marketability and value of Graffius' copyrighted property. Further, by not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Plagiarism often involves the violation of copyright, and copyright infringement is so serious that it is a Federal crime. For many reasons including facts covered in this article, if Graffius opts to take legal action against TurningWest for their violation of his copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
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, October 8). TurningWest's Trial. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/turningwest.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.19899.84008.
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 TurningWest has failed to remove their infringing material. Accordingly, TurningWest knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from TurningWest, attributed to TurningWest and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. TurningWest name, mark, and content (except for what was plagiarized) are the property of TurningWest.
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.
A PDF of this article is here
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/turningwest
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)—infringes on the intellectual property rights of others, results in misinformation, and often violates copyright.
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 applicable to this case (2021 edition) is shown below [Exhibit 1] and is available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246.
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.”
Again, this 2021 edition is referenced because it is the one applicable to this case.
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:
- 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 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is featured and used by businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the globe. 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,
- IEEE,
- James Madison University,
- 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,
- World Resources Institute,
- Yale University,
- and many others.
Details on the Plagiarism
Note: All evidence has been preserved.
A whistleblower tip informed Scott M. Graffius that a video is using Graffius’ intellectual property. The video was identified as:
- Publisher of video: TurningWest
- Date of publication: 16 September 2024
- Title of video: ‘9 13 24 Mastering Team Dev webinar’ (note: the preceding is what is listed on YouTube as the title; however, for reference, the video itself notes that the title is: 'Mastering Team Development: Key Modules and Performance Examples')
- Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7qldELhp7s
Exhibit 2 is shown below. It provides an overview, including thumbnail images from the the video.
Graffius reviewed TurningWest’s 2024 video and saw numerous examples of material—content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development—plagiarized from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property.
TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. Yet, TurningWest used it (some with slight rewording such as changing "recognizing" to "recognize" and similar, which remains plagiarism) commercially and without attribution.
Again, 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). TurningWest’s presentation plagiarized Graffius’ copyrighted ’Phases of Team Development,’ violating his intellectual property.
Instances of TurningWest changing a word from a section from Graffius’ copyrighted property that’s in the present participle form (such as "recognizing") to the present simple form (such as "recognize") or otherwise similar slight rewording is still stealing Graffius' words and ideas; it is still plagiarism. The combination of such rewording and lack of attribution may be seen as a signal of intent to deceive. Regardless of whether the infringement was intentional or "inadvertent," the actions misrepresent the originator of the words and ideas, which is at the heart of plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a profound and disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
Graffius informed TurningWest and TurningWest’s Steve Goodwin about the infringement. An excerpt: "An authorized example of my copyrighted property is at https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246 and other locations. Steven Goodwin and Megan Sands of TurningWest's presentation used some of my intellectual property ... with no attribution to me whatsoever. By doing so, they are falsely leading others to wrongly believe that they are the authors and owners of my intellectual property. Uncool."
Here’s a reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "I have never heard of you before and have never seen any of your materials. This is very basic information and foundational to all team formation efforts." As shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Here’s another reaction from TurningWest's Goodwin: "Who are you and what kind of scam are you trying to pull? I have NEVER heard your name before nor have I EVER seen one word of your materials." Again, as shown by the indisputable proof to come, Goodwin's reaction is problematic for him. TurningWest plagiarized Graffius' work.
Additionally, by TurningWest not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
When Graffius reviewed the TurningWest's infringing 2024 video, he saw that content on the characteristics and strategies for the phases of team development was teeming with plagiarized material from Graffius’ 2021 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property. The indisputable proof follows.
Here's Exhibit 3. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Forming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Exhibit 4 is below. It provides diligent, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Storming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows more examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 5. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Norming phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 6. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Performing phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Here's Exhibit 7. It's a delineated, side-by-side comparison of content on the characteristics and strategies for the Adjourning phase of team development. Respective content from Graffius' 2021 copyrighted 'Phases of Team Development' appears with a green background. Material from TurningWest's infringing 2024 video is exposed with a red background. It shows additional examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words or ideas as their own.
Each of the five immediately preceding exhibits (Exhibit 3, Exhibit 4, Exhibit 5, Exhibit 6, and Exhibit 7) showed examples of TurningWest's plagiarism—TurningWest stealing and passing off Graffius' words and ideas as their own. Individually, the exhibits are compelling. Collectively, they form an irrefutable, damning picture of TurningWest's plagiarism.
Given the indisputable facts, TurningWest’s Goodwin must now reflect on his earlier reactions with regret, as they have cast him in an entirely unfavorable light.
Graffius' 'Phases of Team Development' is registered with the US Copyright Office. TurningWest did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius' property. Yet, TurningWest used Graffius' property commercially and without attribution. TurningWest's actions are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
TurningWest's plagiarism damaged the marketability and value of Graffius' copyrighted property. Further, by not taking responsibility for and addressing their damaging plagiarism, TurningWest continues to spread misinformation and is directly responsible for their ongoing violation of Graffius' intellectual property.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Plagiarism often involves the violation of copyright, and copyright infringement is so serious that it is a Federal crime. For many reasons including facts covered in this article, if Graffius opts to take legal action against TurningWest for their violation of his copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
If there's an update after this article is published, the information will appear in the Post-Publication Notes section.
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, October 8). TurningWest's Trial. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/turningwest.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.19899.84008.
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 TurningWest has failed to remove their infringing material. Accordingly, TurningWest knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from TurningWest, attributed to TurningWest and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. TurningWest name, mark, and content (except for what was plagiarized) are the property of TurningWest.
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.
A PDF of this article is here
The short link for this article is https://bit.ly/turningwest
‘Innovation Showcase’ Speaker Quotes Scott M. Graffius
20 April 2019
BY SCOTT M. GRAFFIUS | ScottGraffius.com
Scott M. Graffius’ award-winning 2016 book, Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions, includes: "If you don’t collect any metrics, you’re flying blind. If you collect and focus on too many, they may be obstructing your field of view."
In-House Recruitment (IHR) boasts: "Since 2009, IHR has empowered the UK’s in-house recruiters to be their very best. Open to all, our community exists to recognise, inspire, and educate."
On 7 February 2019, IHR hosted their In-House Recruitment Technology Conference at The Congress Centre London. Emma Güneş presented ‘Innovation Showcase – Landed’ at the event. She closed her talk with, "If you don’t collect any metrics, you’re flying blind. If you collect and focus on too many, they may be obstructing your field of view." However, she did not attribute the material to Graffius. A recording is on YouTube here. Regardless of Emma’s intent, her action wrongly leads others to falsely believe that she is the creator and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted content.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Therefore, this communication is necessary to report the above issue and ensure proper attribution and respect for the author and owner of the content.
© Copyright 2019 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.
Scott M. Graffius’ award-winning 2016 book, Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions, includes: "If you don’t collect any metrics, you’re flying blind. If you collect and focus on too many, they may be obstructing your field of view."
In-House Recruitment (IHR) boasts: "Since 2009, IHR has empowered the UK’s in-house recruiters to be their very best. Open to all, our community exists to recognise, inspire, and educate."
On 7 February 2019, IHR hosted their In-House Recruitment Technology Conference at The Congress Centre London. Emma Güneş presented ‘Innovation Showcase – Landed’ at the event. She closed her talk with, "If you don’t collect any metrics, you’re flying blind. If you collect and focus on too many, they may be obstructing your field of view." However, she did not attribute the material to Graffius. A recording is on YouTube here. Regardless of Emma’s intent, her action wrongly leads others to falsely believe that she is the creator and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted content.
Graffius maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. Therefore, this communication is necessary to report the above issue and ensure proper attribution and respect for the author and owner of the content.
© Copyright 2019 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.
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.
Pennsylvania State Agency Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property
21 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 a Pennsylvania state agency is using his copyrighted property without credit. After Graffius received the details, he confirmed that the report was valid. Based on the indisputable facts, the bad acts involve the ethical issue of plagiarism and the legal issue of copyright infringement. The Pennsylvania state agency's use of Graffius' intellectual property was not ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
Graffius vigorously maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. This article serves as a clarion call for the Pennsylvania state agency 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 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 © 2008-2019 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 here and here, 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.
Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Publication Uses Graffius’ Copyrighted Property Without Permission and Without Attribution, Violating Graffius' Intellectual Property Rights
Exhibit 2 is below. It shows pages 1, 54, 55, and 56 of the infringing publication.
As shown above, the infringing document is marked with:
The PDF file is named ‘QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf.’
The infringing document is known to reside here and here.
The infringing document may reside at additional locations.
Exhibit 3 is below. It provides a view of characteristics and strategies content from Graffius’ 2019 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property, contrasted with infringing corresponding content from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ 2022 ‘Quality Management Certification Handbook.’
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 reveals blatant infringement. As a supplement to the visual above, here are some examples, shown in-line:
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: ”Sticking to safe topics”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “stick to safe topics”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Taking the ‘lead’”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “taking the lead”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Providing clear expectations and consistent instructions”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “providing clear expectations and consistent instructions”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Competition
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “competition”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “High emotions”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “strong emotions”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Normalizing matters”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “normalizing”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Reconciliation”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “reconciliation”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Members are engaged & supportive”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “engaged and supportive of each other”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Relief, lowered anxiety”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “relief/lowered anxiety”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Developing cohesion”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “cohesion”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Recognizing individual and group efforts”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “recognizing individual and group efforts”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Providing learning opportunities and feedback”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “providing learning opportunities and feedback”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Monitoring the ‘energy’ of the group”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “monitoring the energy of the group”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Reconciliation”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “reconciliation”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “demonstration of interdependence”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Ability to effectively produce as a team”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “ability to effectively produce as a team”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “’Guiding from the side’ (minimal intervention)”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “guiding from the side lines with minimal intervention”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Celebrating”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “celebrating”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Encouraging group decision-making & problem-solving”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “encouraging group decision-making and problem-solving”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Providing opportunities to share learning across teams”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: ”providing opportunities to share learning across teams”
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 Pennsylvania Department of Human Services publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property.
A significant volume of Graffius’ copyrighted property was used.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services infringing publication did not attribute Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Accordingly, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services wrongly leads others to falsely believe that it is the author and owner of Graffius’ respective intellectual property.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services blatantly violated Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Copyright infringement is disgraceful, unprofessional, unethical, immoral, and illegal.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ infringement damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ intellectual property.
For the aforementioned reasons, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ use of Graffius’ copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
So long as the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ infringing publication exists anywhere, in any form, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services must immediately implement the following three (3) actions regarding their infringing publication—and any other documents or materials containing infringing content:
Copyrights and other intellectual property rights are essential because they safeguard the works of creators, allowing them to benefit from their efforts, which in turn fosters creativity and innovation. Graffius vigorously maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
This troubling and consequential case is open.
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 Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States.
It’s the fifth-most populous state, with over 13 million residents as of the 2020 U.S. census.
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.
References/Sources
The following is a list of material on publishing standards and procedures. Some cover the reporting and handling of copyright infringement.
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, October 21). Pennsylvania State Agency Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/pa-state-agency-2024.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.29391.09120.
Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication (21 October 2024), they will appear here.
Update on 25 October 2024
Graffius emailed the details of the violation—as delineated in this article—to multiple people with Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services. That email was titled "Notice to Pennsylvania Department of Human Services on the unauthorized and unattributed use of Scott M. Graffius' intellectual property; copyright infringement, damages."
Update on 26 October 2024
Additionally, Graffius forwarded the email referenced above to Valerie A. Arkoosh. She is the head of Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services.
Update on 28 October 2024
To date, Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services has not addressed nor resolved their violation. Accordingly, it knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Update on 6 November 2024
To date, the agency has failed to remove their infringing publication (or even respond). Accordingly, it knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Update on 7 November 2024
Among other actions, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services must immediately remove their infringing publication from all platforms/channels/distributions. The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services continues to serve their infringing publication at https://palms-awss3-repository.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Shared_Content/Quality+Management/2022+Certification/QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf. Graffius included that link along with other details in his initial email to the agency, titled "Notice to Pennsylvania Department of Human Services on the unauthorized and unattributed use of Scott M. Graffius' intellectual property; copyright infringement, damages." Graffius specified the locations known to him; the agency may be serving their infringing publication at additional locations; the agency is responsible for everywhere they published their infringing publication.
By still serving its infringing publication, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services continues to knowingly and willfully spread misinformation and violate Graffius' intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Update on 14 November 2024
As noted in the article, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services was serving its infringing publication (PDF with file name 'QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf') at multiple locations. The two locations known to Graffius were here and here. However, there may be additional locations.
The agency disabled access to their infringing publication at the first location known to Graffius - https://palms-awss3-repository.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Shared_Content/Quality+Management/2022+Certification/QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf. Going to that link now displays an error page. A screen shot is below.
The agency replaced their infringing publication with a different publication at the second location known to Graffius - https://www.myodp.org/course/view.php?id=1795.
Again, the Pennsylvania state agency blatantly violated Graffius' copyright, damaging the marketability and value of his intellectual property. Copyright infringement is so serious that it is a Federal crime.
Graffius reserves his rights. If Graffius opts to take legal action against the Pennsylvania state agency for their violation of his copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
Further updates, if any, will appear here.

Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ content, attributed to the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ content (excerpt for what was stolen from others) is the property of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. Visit ScottGraffius.com.
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 a Pennsylvania state agency is using his copyrighted property without credit. After Graffius received the details, he confirmed that the report was valid. Based on the indisputable facts, the bad acts involve the ethical issue of plagiarism and the legal issue of copyright infringement. The Pennsylvania state agency's use of Graffius' intellectual property was not ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
Graffius vigorously maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights. This article serves as a clarion call for the Pennsylvania state agency 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 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 © 2008-2019 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 here and here, 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.
Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Publication Uses Graffius’ Copyrighted Property Without Permission and Without Attribution, Violating Graffius' Intellectual Property Rights
Exhibit 2 is below. It shows pages 1, 54, 55, and 56 of the infringing publication.
As shown above, the infringing document is marked with:
- “Pennsylvania”
- “Department of Human Services”
- “Office of Developmental Programs”
- “Quality Management Certification Handbook”
The PDF file is named ‘QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf.’
The infringing document is known to reside here and here.
The infringing document may reside at additional locations.
Exhibit 3 is below. It provides a view of characteristics and strategies content from Graffius’ 2019 copyrighted ‘Phases of Team Development’ property, contrasted with infringing corresponding content from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ 2022 ‘Quality Management Certification Handbook.’
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 reveals blatant infringement. As a supplement to the visual above, here are some examples, shown in-line:
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: ”Sticking to safe topics”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “stick to safe topics”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Taking the ‘lead’”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “taking the lead”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Providing clear expectations and consistent instructions”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “providing clear expectations and consistent instructions”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Competition
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “competition”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “High emotions”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “strong emotions”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Normalizing matters”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “normalizing”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Reconciliation”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “reconciliation”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Members are engaged & supportive”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “engaged and supportive of each other”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Relief, lowered anxiety”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “relief/lowered anxiety”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Developing cohesion”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “cohesion”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Recognizing individual and group efforts”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “recognizing individual and group efforts”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Providing learning opportunities and feedback”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “providing learning opportunities and feedback”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Monitoring the ‘energy’ of the group”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “monitoring the energy of the group”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Reconciliation”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “reconciliation”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Demonstrations of interdependence”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “demonstration of interdependence”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Ability to effectively produce as a team”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “ability to effectively produce as a team”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “’Guiding from the side’ (minimal intervention)”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “guiding from the side lines with minimal intervention”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Celebrating”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “celebrating”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Encouraging group decision-making & problem-solving”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: “encouraging group decision-making and problem-solving”
🟢 Graffius’ copyrighted 2019 property includes: “Providing opportunities to share learning across teams”
🔴 The infringing 2022 publication includes this: ”providing opportunities to share learning across teams”
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 Pennsylvania Department of Human Services publication used Graffius’ copyrighted property.
A significant volume of Graffius’ copyrighted property was used.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services infringing publication did not attribute Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Accordingly, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services wrongly leads others to falsely believe that it is the author and owner of Graffius’ respective intellectual property.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services blatantly violated Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Copyright infringement is disgraceful, unprofessional, unethical, immoral, and illegal.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ infringement damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ intellectual property.
For the aforementioned reasons, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ use of Graffius’ copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
So long as the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ infringing publication exists anywhere, in any form, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services must immediately implement the following three (3) actions regarding their infringing publication—and any other documents or materials containing infringing content:
- Remove the Infringing Material. Electronic Versions: Immediately remove the infringing publication from all 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 all 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, users, or other 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.
Copyrights and other intellectual property rights are essential because they safeguard the works of creators, allowing them to benefit from their efforts, which in turn fosters creativity and innovation. Graffius vigorously maintains, enforces, and protects his copyright and other intellectual property rights.
This troubling and consequential case is open.
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 Pennsylvania,
- About Scott M. Graffius,
- References/Sources,
- How to Cite This Article,
- Post-Publication Notes,
- and more.
About Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States.
It’s the fifth-most populous state, with over 13 million residents as of the 2020 U.S. census.
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
References/Sources
The following is a list of material on publishing standards and procedures. Some cover the reporting and handling of copyright infringement.
- 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 21). Pennsylvania State Agency Used Scott M. Graffius' Intellectual Property. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/pa-state-agency-2024.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.29391.09120.
Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication (21 October 2024), they will appear here.
Update on 25 October 2024
Graffius emailed the details of the violation—as delineated in this article—to multiple people with Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services. That email was titled "Notice to Pennsylvania Department of Human Services on the unauthorized and unattributed use of Scott M. Graffius' intellectual property; copyright infringement, damages."
Update on 26 October 2024
Additionally, Graffius forwarded the email referenced above to Valerie A. Arkoosh. She is the head of Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services.
Update on 28 October 2024
To date, Pennsylvania's Department of Human Services has not addressed nor resolved their violation. Accordingly, it knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Update on 6 November 2024
To date, the agency has failed to remove their infringing publication (or even respond). Accordingly, it knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Update on 7 November 2024
Among other actions, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services must immediately remove their infringing publication from all platforms/channels/distributions. The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services continues to serve their infringing publication at https://palms-awss3-repository.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Shared_Content/Quality+Management/2022+Certification/QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf. Graffius included that link along with other details in his initial email to the agency, titled "Notice to Pennsylvania Department of Human Services on the unauthorized and unattributed use of Scott M. Graffius' intellectual property; copyright infringement, damages." Graffius specified the locations known to him; the agency may be serving their infringing publication at additional locations; the agency is responsible for everywhere they published their infringing publication.
By still serving its infringing publication, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services continues to knowingly and willfully spread misinformation and violate Graffius' intellectual property rights.
Any further updates on this consequential matter will appear here.
Update on 14 November 2024
As noted in the article, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services was serving its infringing publication (PDF with file name 'QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf') at multiple locations. The two locations known to Graffius were here and here. However, there may be additional locations.
The agency disabled access to their infringing publication at the first location known to Graffius - https://palms-awss3-repository.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Shared_Content/Quality+Management/2022+Certification/QM_Handbook_FINAL_20220322.pdf. Going to that link now displays an error page. A screen shot is below.
The agency replaced their infringing publication with a different publication at the second location known to Graffius - https://www.myodp.org/course/view.php?id=1795.
Again, the Pennsylvania state agency blatantly violated Graffius' copyright, damaging the marketability and value of his intellectual property. Copyright infringement is so serious that it is a Federal crime.
Graffius reserves his rights. If Graffius opts to take legal action against the Pennsylvania state agency for their violation of his copyright, the Federal case will include the greater of statutory damages or actual damages, special charges for willful infringement (which has been clarified by the courts to be either "intentional behavior" or merely "reckless behavior"), and additional costs.
Further updates, if any, will appear here.

Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ content, attributed to the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis. Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ content (excerpt for what was stolen from others) is the property of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved. Visit ScottGraffius.com.
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.
Toastmasters Used Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted Property Word-for-Word in Their Publication Without Authorization or Attribution
23 October 2023
BY SCOTT M. GRAFFIUS | ScottGraffius.com
Introduction
Toastmasters used—without authorization or attribution—Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted property in their publication. Based on the indisputable facts, Toastmasters’ 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 Toastmasters to face the repercussions of, and take responsibility for, their blatant and damaging violation.
Background
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.
Graffius initially developed his intellectual property in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it. For reference, an authorized example of his copyrighted property applicable in this case (2021 edition) is here: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246 . It is shown below as well (as Exhibit 1).
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.”
Conference organizers, businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. Examples are here.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is central and key to many of those sessions. Details including his rate card, a listing of his engagements, and more are here.
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 Yale University, Adobe, IEEE, Microsoft, UK Sports Institute, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, American Management Association, 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.
Toastmasters Used Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted Property Word-for-Word in Their Publication Without Authorization or Attribution, Violating Graffius’ Intellectual Property Rights
Toastmasters infringing 2022 publication is marked with:
- “Toastmasters International”
- “Area Director Handbook”
- “2022”
- “Guide to a successful year as Area Director”
- “District 101”
Exhibit 2 is below. It shows pages 2, 19, 20, and 21 from the infringing 2022 publication.
Further details follow.
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Toastmasters did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, Toastmasters used Graffius’ 4 January 2021 copyrighted property in their 2022 publication.
Comparing Graffius' copyrighted 4 January 2021 'Phases of Team Development' intellectual property what Toastmasters has in its 2022 publication is reveals Toastmasters’ blatant infringement.
Exhibit 3 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Forming stage of team development.
Exhibit 4 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Storming stage of team development.
Exhibit 5 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Norming stage of team development.
Exhibit 6 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Performing stage of team development.
Exhibit 7 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Adjourning stage of team development.
Further, Toastmasters did not attribute their use of Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Accordingly, Toastmasters is wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they (or others) are the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted property.
Conclusion
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Toastmasters did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, Toastmasters used Graffius’ 4 January 2021 copyrighted property in their 2022 infringing publication.
Toastmasters used a significant volume of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Toastmasters’ infringement included extensive word-for-word use of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Toastmasters did not attribute their use of Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Accordingly, Toastmasters is wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they (or others) are the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted content.
Toastmasters damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
For the aforementioned reasons, Toastmasters’ use of Graffius’ copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
Additionally, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), 17 U.S. Code § 1202, addresses the integrity of copyright management information. It specifies that that removal of copyright information from another’s intellectual property is a crime. That’s for all cases, including educational/non-commercial use. As shown by comparing Graffius' copyrighted property (Exhibit 1) and with page 19 of Toastmasters infringing publication (shown in Exhibit 2), Toastmasters cropped-out or otherwise removed Graffius’ copyright information. That alone makes Toastmasters' actions not ‘fair use’ and a crime.
Toastmasters’ actions in this matter are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
So long as the infringing publication exists in any form, Toastmasters knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Toastmasters 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 damaging, disturbing, and consequential matter.
This article serves as a clarion call for Toastmasters to face the repercussions of, and take responsibility for, their blatant and damaging violation.
This case is open.
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. (2023, October 23). Toastmasters Used Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted Property Word-for-Word in Their Publication Without Authorization or Attribution. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/ti-23.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.18914.34240.
Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from Toastmasters International content, attributed to Toastmasters International and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis.
Toastmasters International name, mark, and content (except for what was stolen from others) are the property of Toastmasters International.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
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.
Introduction
Toastmasters used—without authorization or attribution—Scott M. Graffius’ copyrighted property in their publication. Based on the indisputable facts, Toastmasters’ 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 Toastmasters to face the repercussions of, and take responsibility for, their blatant and damaging violation.
Background
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.
Graffius initially developed his intellectual property in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it. For reference, an authorized example of his copyrighted property applicable in this case (2021 edition) is here: https://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.22040.42246 . It is shown below as well (as Exhibit 1).
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.”
Conference organizers, businesses, professional associations, government agencies, and universities around the world engage Graffius to deliver compelling talks and workshops. Examples are here.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ intellectual property is central and key to many of those sessions. Details including his rate card, a listing of his engagements, and more are here.
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 Yale University, Adobe, IEEE, Microsoft, UK Sports Institute, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, American Management Association, 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.
Toastmasters Used Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted Property Word-for-Word in Their Publication Without Authorization or Attribution, Violating Graffius’ Intellectual Property Rights
Toastmasters infringing 2022 publication is marked with:
- “Toastmasters International”
- “Area Director Handbook”
- “2022”
- “Guide to a successful year as Area Director”
- “District 101”
Exhibit 2 is below. It shows pages 2, 19, 20, and 21 from the infringing 2022 publication.
Further details follow.
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Toastmasters did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, Toastmasters used Graffius’ 4 January 2021 copyrighted property in their 2022 publication.
Comparing Graffius' copyrighted 4 January 2021 'Phases of Team Development' intellectual property what Toastmasters has in its 2022 publication is reveals Toastmasters’ blatant infringement.
Exhibit 3 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Forming stage of team development.
Exhibit 4 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Storming stage of team development.
Exhibit 5 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Norming stage of team development.
Exhibit 6 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Performing stage of team development.
Exhibit 7 is below. It shows Toastmasters extensive—including word-for-word—use of Graffius’ copyrighted property on the characteristics and strategies for the Adjourning stage of team development.
Further, Toastmasters did not attribute their use of Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Accordingly, Toastmasters is wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they (or others) are the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted property.
Conclusion
Again, Graffius’ copyright ownership details and permission request information are integrated into and appear on his intellectual property.
Toastmasters did not request nor receive permission to use Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Nevertheless, Toastmasters used Graffius’ 4 January 2021 copyrighted property in their 2022 infringing publication.
Toastmasters used a significant volume of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Toastmasters’ infringement included extensive word-for-word use of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
Toastmasters did not attribute their use of Graffius’ copyrighted property to Graffius. Accordingly, Toastmasters is wrongly leading others to falsely believe that they (or others) are the author and owner of Graffius’ respective copyrighted content.
Toastmasters damaged the marketability and value of Graffius’ copyrighted property.
For the aforementioned reasons, Toastmasters’ use of Graffius’ copyrighted property was not ‘fair use’ nor otherwise allowed.
Additionally, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), 17 U.S. Code § 1202, addresses the integrity of copyright management information. It specifies that that removal of copyright information from another’s intellectual property is a crime. That’s for all cases, including educational/non-commercial use. As shown by comparing Graffius' copyrighted property (Exhibit 1) and with page 19 of Toastmasters infringing publication (shown in Exhibit 2), Toastmasters cropped-out or otherwise removed Graffius’ copyright information. That alone makes Toastmasters' actions not ‘fair use’ and a crime.
Toastmasters’ actions in this matter are a disgraceful breach of professional ethics, moral standards, and Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
So long as the infringing publication exists in any form, Toastmasters knowingly and willfully continues to spread misinformation and violate Graffius’ intellectual property rights.
Toastmasters must immediately implement the following three (3) actions:
- Remove the Infringing Material. Electronic Versions: Immediately remove the infringing material from all 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 (recycle) 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. Subscribers and Purchasers and other 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 damaging, disturbing, and consequential matter.
This article serves as a clarion call for Toastmasters to face the repercussions of, and take responsibility for, their blatant and damaging violation.
This case is open.
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
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- 🇩🇰 Denmark
- 🇫🇮 Finland
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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.
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- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- 🇺🇸 United States
How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2023, October 23). Toastmasters Used Scott M. Graffius' Copyrighted Property Word-for-Word in Their Publication Without Authorization or Attribution. Available at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/ti-23.html. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.18914.34240.
Post-Publication Notes
If there are any supplements or updates to this article after the date of publication, they will appear here.
Content Acknowledgements
This article uses limited excerpts from Toastmasters International content, attributed to Toastmasters International and used under fair use for news reporting and analysis.
Toastmasters International name, mark, and content (except for what was stolen from others) are the property of Toastmasters International.
Graffius’ ‘Phases of Team Development’ is copyright © Scott M. Graffius. All rights reserved.
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.