Thanks for joining us today! Can you tell us about your role at Labstep?

The name ‘Electronic Lab Notebook’ or ELN, to a degree, does a disservice to the capabilities of modern ELN solutions, which are far more than just a notebook. Yes, it is true that the ELN should have a word-processing component which can be used to create documents for your experiment write-ups, but it is a mistake to consider this the major functionality of the ELN. A modern ELN solution like Labstep will provide a lot more than just word processing, which is specific for the needs of those involved in scientific R&D.

For example:

• Data structuring: A good ELN can help you structure your data so that it is easy to access, query, and analyse. In Labstep, if I want to see all the data that has been generated by running a specific protocol, I can do this with the click of a single button. I don’t need to trawl through experimental write-ups to find out which relate to my protocol of interest. I also don't need to manually collate data from different experiments in a single spreadsheet to compare or filter my data because in Labstep, this can be done automatically when you have your protocols set up to capture your data the way you need.
• Domain-specific features: Labstep contains features and tools which are specific to scientific domains and do not exist in more generic office tools. Chemistry and molecular biology tools simplify working with chemical structures and nucleic acid sequences, respectively. Drawing a chemical’s skeletal structure or simulating a restriction digest are not things that anyone wants to attempt in text document. Whilst there are fantastic specialist tools for carrying out scientific tasks, having the tools for this integrated to the ELN removes the burden of to accurately link and capture the data between two different tools.
• LabOps: Lab operations, lab ops or laboratory management. However you choose to call it, this is undoubtedly a burden for all labs. How are you managing when the next service date is due for your analytical devices? How can you easily determine which data has been collected with which device? Is it clear which samples have been produced from which parent sample upstream in your process? All these things are easy to set up in Labstep because the software has been designed with the requirements of R&D research in mind. Conversely, these tasks can be harder with software that doesn’t have the built-in structure for such activities.
• Research coordination and management: Finally, an ELN can provide management tools such as assigning users, signing experiments, drafting protocols and locking documents, including the flexibility to design your own workflows for these things. As with LabOps, software designed with research in mind can provide more bespoke tooling, which is specialised for these tasks and can help provide users with a more hollistic overview of the research environment.

What was your journey that led you to Labstep?

Misconception 2: It will slow down my work.

Using any new tool has the potential to create friction,particularly when it will be used in day-to-day activities. Moving to newprocesses takes time and adjustment, and there can be much to consider from achange management perspective. But will it actually slow your work down? Ibelieve not, and that this perception is a myth. Here’s why:

• Long-term benefits: Something that is key is that taking more time to structure data appropriately can pay dividends in the future. If all data is recorded in the protocol that was executed whilst generating that data, the record of how that data was created is automatically created. If this data is also stored in parameterised fields, the tasks of searching, organising and gaining insight from this data upstream can be simplified enormously. Simply put, it's important to consider time gains that can be obtained at all stages of your workflows. Well-structured and well-documented data should be easier to work with further down the line.
• You can get a head start: ELNs will contain tools and features that can allow you make templates for your data or your documents. There may be some time investment required to set up these templates, but they can ultimately save time and mean that the data is well structured without much burden on the end users at the point of data capture. Ultimately, this can enable more straightforward and streamlined experimental execution. Within Labstep, these templates can be very simple, such as categories for devices or resources or more complex workflows that are powered by Jupyter Notebooks, allowing users to carryout data analysis or processing at the touch of a button. Whatever form it takes, it is worth taking time to see how the tools within an ELN can be leveraged to ultimately save you time, rather than slowing you down.
• Unifying processes: Members of the same team may be taking very different approaches to their work; some may be using pen and paper to write down their observations, whilst another may have created their own database to methodically store and access data. This creates a challenging situation when migrating to an ELN. There will be users with very differing working practices and skill sets, each of whom needs an ELN which works for them. Whilst this may be an undertaking, there are benefits to unifying procedures. For example, if individuals follow their own system for data capture and storage, there is a risk that if the individual leaves the team, the knowledge of how to access, retrieve or search that data may be lost too. Having all data stored in a single system can help to provide better oversight and for managers and team leaders, who no longer need to navigate different processes.
  I address the concept of the gains that can be made with an ELN by front-loading effort in a previous blog post, The Activation Energy of Implementing an ELN. In short, it can be worth putting in that work upfront, in order to reap the rewards further downstream.

You mentioned a “reproducibility crisis.” What does that mean?

Misconception 3: Everything needs to be interconnected.

In the world of laboratory-based science, it’s highly likely that there will be multiple devices that are employed in the execution and analysis of experiments. Information is also likely to come from many different sources: perhaps there is a LIMS system in place for storing sample information, perhaps there are project management tools used by the research leaders or domain-specific software that is used for data analysis, in-silico modelling and molecular biology.

In an ideal world, multiple disparate instruments and pieces of software would be seamlessly integrated in a cohesive lab ecosystem. Creating such a setup, though, would undoubtedly require significant investment of time and money, so here‘s a couple of things to consider when trying to work out what really needs to be integrated with your ELN:

• Prioritise. Your team will undoubtedly work with many instruments and pieces of software, but which ones are really core to your workflows? Think about the 80/20 rule – are there quick wins to be made with a single integration that will cover a lot of your current practices? Does data need to flow bi-directionally between the software or will it always be in a single direction?
• Revaluate. Does implementing a new ELN system negate the need for some existing systems? ELNS can be highly multifunctional and it may be that a function within the ELN is able to meet the needs previously covered by another piece of software. This could reduce costs, remove the need for integration and remove friction from workflows.
• Opportunity cost. If the integration of other software is likely to delay the implementation of the ELN itself, consider the opportunity cost of this delay. In general, I would recommend a phased approach in which the ELN is implemented, users are trained and begin using it in earnest in their day-to-day work and integrations make up subsequent phases of the implementation. In this way, no time is lost in the initial ELN set-up, and the users can more accurately reflect on what they need from an integration within the context of how they work with the ELN. Different situations may need different approaches, and this needs to be assessed on a case-by-case basis  but getting new tools in the hands of users and building momentum from there can be a good strategy.These are some of, what I think, are the misconceptions around ELNs and why they are indeed misconceptions. What are yours? What do you think of when you think of ELNs?

Are most of your customers using an existing ELN? What do you do when a client comes to you with a shoe box filled with post-its?

What is something that really impresses your customers during their first few months using the Labstep ELN?

It sounds like an ELN could be good for sustainability and conservation of resources.

What makes you most excited about joining with STARLIMS?