ELIXIR Handbook of Operations

ELIXIR is a distributed infrastructure, built around existing centres of excellence throughout the European member states represented through national Nodes, and incorporating the internationally supported European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI). There are currently over 160 institutes from 20 member states taking part in ELIXIR. Operating a large, distributed, ‘virtual’ organisation such as ELIXIR requires strong coordination capabilities with clear roles and effective and simple processes. Implementation of this organisation and integrating existing national networks and infrastructures is a significant management challenge and the core role of the secretariat at the ELIXIR Hub. Within the ELIXIR-EXCELERATE project, this development is supported through the establishment and annual updates of an ELIXIR-wide ELIXIR Handbook of Operations that captures the overall policies and processes in an easily accessible document (WP12, D12.1). Here, the first version of the ELIXIR Handbook is presented. The structure is arranged according to the ELIXIR Hub operational modules, with separate sections for Governance, Nodes and the Service provision, the ELIXIR Programme, Project Management, Communications and External Relations, and Technical Operations. The handbook will be made available on the ELIXIR intranet, and is aimed for the whole ELIXIR community: staff in ELIXIR Nodes, ELIXIR Hub staff, ELIXIR Board members and national funders. While some sections in the handbook will necessarily remain internal to the ELIXIR community, the goal is to provide as much open access content as possible via the ELIXIR website. The handbook will have an annual release schedule as part of the EXCELERATE project and the final version will be released at the end of this project