Working Groups

Business usage

Working Groups are collaborative spaces grouping people, datasets, and discussions around a research theme or project.

Technical behavior

• Membership: invitation-based, with roles (Owner, Co-owner, Member). Owners can transfer their role.
• Visibility: Groups are private and not discoverable by non-members.
• Permissions: actions depend on role (managing members, approving datasets).

List View:

• Displays all groups you belong to.
• Owner/Member avatars are shown as initials.
• Options to invite new members.
• A three-dot menu (for owners) to:
  • Rename
  • Archive (archived groups are read-only)
  • Transfer ownership

Owner Actions

Rename

The Rename option allows the owner to update the name of the Working Group. Renaming does not affect membership, shared content, or permissions — only the group’s display name is changed. This is useful when the research theme, project scope, or internal naming conventions evolve.

Archive

The Archive action permanently closes the Working Group. Once archived, the group becomes read-only: no new members or co-owners can be added, and the group cannot be reopened. All shared material — datasets, sequences, discussions, and permissions previously granted — remains fully accessible to existing members. However, the Working Group itself and its membership settings can no longer be modified. This action is irreversible and should be used when a project has concluded or when collaborative activity is no longer required.

Transfer ownership

The Transfer ownership option allows the current owner to delegate their ownership role to another existing member of the Working Group. The owner can select the new owner from the list of current participants displayed in the interface. This is typically used when project responsibilities shift or when the original owner is no longer the appropriate person to manage group permissions and settings.

Detail View:

Clicking a group reveals:

• Members: list of users, their roles, and join dates.
• Datasets: shared datasets with virus type and sequence details. Links to dataset permalinks.
• Sequences: list of individual sequences shared in the group (see Sequence and Data Sharing).

Sharing Logic:

• If a non-owner shares a dataset: rights remain unchanged (Private sequences remain hidden to the group).
• If the Dataset Owner shares a dataset: All members gain access to the private sequences within that dataset (as if they were public).

Creating & Inviting

• Click Create Working Group and define a name.
• Invite Members:
  • Existing Contacts: Select from the “Add user” list (people you already share groups with).
  • New Contacts: Enter the user’s Handle (unique identifier found in their Account section).
• Assign roles (Owner or Member) where applicable.
• Invited users receive a notification in their Account section (ticket/badge) to Accept or Refuse. Refusal blocks access, but they can be re-invited.