A researcher or author identifier uniquely identifies a researcher in a specific digital space or information system, such as a citation database (like Web of Science or Scopus). Some information systems are able to communicate and exchange information with each other. Identifiers may be aligned with or act as an author profile, which allows a researcher to maintain an online presence, track citations, and manage their scholarly record. 

What it is

ORCID  (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is an international, interdisciplinary, open, and not-for-profit organization that provides a registry of persistent unique identifiers for researchers. Your ORCID iD distinguishes you from other researchers and makes sure your work is recognized.

The ORCID iD is a 16-digit number that is compatible with the ISO Standard (ISO 27729), also known as the International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI), e.g. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-2345-6789. Your ORICD iD is fully owned and controlled by you. 

ORCID is not a social media platform, nor a profile system, nor an online CV or content repository, but it does connect with many other tools that fulfill these functions. Learn more here. 

• Link your ORCID iD with other researcher IDs, including ResearcherID, Scopus Author ID, and LinkedIn
• Populate your ORCID profile by importing your research from other databases, including Scopus and Web of Science
• Choose your privacy settings for each of your research entries 

How to get an ORCID iD

• Register for an ORCID iD by visiting: https://orcid.org/register

Adding works to your ORCID record

There are several ways that you can add works to your record: 

1. Add works by direct Import from other systems. This is the recommended process because it reduces errors and enables a reliable connection between your ORCID iD and your work The link above includes a full list of systems you can import from and instricutions. It includes: 
   • ResearcherID 
   • Scopus Author ID
2. Import and export works via BibTeX. If you would like to import data from your Google Scholar profile or EndNote, you will have to import from a BibTeX (.bib) file into your ORCID record. BibTeX is a platform-independent, plain-text format used for bibliographic citations.
3. Add works manually 

What it is 

The Scopus Author Identifier is a is a unique number that is offered by Scopus, Elsevier's abstract and citation database. The Scopus Author Identifier assigns each author a unique ID and groups together all of teh documents written by that author. This generates an author profile which includes identifiers, list of documents associated with an author, citations, h-index, and subject areas.

You are able to export your Scopus profile to SciVal (Elsevier), a product that offers visualization of research performance, benchmark relative to peers, develop collaborative partnerships and analyze research trends.

How to get a Scopus Author Identifier 

Scopus automatically creates an author identifier number for each author using an algorithm that matches associated documents based on the author's affiliation, subject area, city or country, dates of publication, citations, and co-authors. Read more about how authors are matched and how associated documents are grouped. 

Adding works to your Scopus Profile 

Only material that is indexed by Scopus can be added to your Scopus Profile. Refer to the Scopus content coverage policy to learn more about what is indexed.

You must contact Scopus to add/remove  documents or correct information in your author profile. Scopus offers details on how to correct this information. 

Does the Scopus Author Identifier work with ORCID? 

• Yes, but you are only able to import your Scopus Author Identifier and publications into ORCID,or send your author details to ORCID.
• Learn more about how to import details to ORCID 

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What it is

ResearcherID is a unique identifier offered through the Web of Science and owned by Clarivate Analytics (formerly Thompson Reuters). It is used to track researcher output and to update publication records in Web of Science, also ensuring correct author attribution and disambiguation.  The Web of Science ResearcherID is used to keep publications synchronized across the Web of Science Group suite of solutions: Web of Science, InCites, Converis, and Publons. 

How to get a ResearcherID

• Researchers with one or more Web of Science core collection-indexed publications: A ResearcherID will automatically be assigned to you This is done though Publons, a free service for academics to track, verify, and showcase their peer review and editorial contributions for academic journals.
• Researchers without any Web of Science indexed publications: You must register/create for a Publons Profile at https://publons.com/account/register/

Adding works to your Publons profile 

There are several ways that you can add publications to Publons: 

1. Add publications through direct import from Web of Science: This process allows you to claim only Web of Science publications returned. 
2. Import from ORCID: This process requires that you authorize Publons to pull records from your ORICD record. You must first connect your account. 
3. Import by file upload (RIS, CSV, or BibTex); If you would like to import data from your Google Scholar profile, you will have to import from a BibTeX (.bib) file. Learn more about the fields that are required and allowed for file import of publications. 
4. Search and import by DOI or title: You can also use an arXiv ir PubMed ID. 

What is Publons? 

As of April 2019, all public ResearcherIDs moved to Publons. Publons is the new environment where researchers can benefit from an improved Web of Science ResearcherID. Features available: 

• Add publication and citation metrics to your profile from Web of Science, ORCID, or import via RIS, BibTex, or CSV file
• Assistance in proper author attribution and identification across Web of Science 
• Redesigned public profile 
• Track, verify, and showcase peer review and journal editing work 
• Linking to ORCID 
• Downloadable academic record 
• Automatic notification when: 

  • your papers receive post-publication peer reviews; 

  • peer reviews are scored by editors or fellow experts; and 

  • papers you reviewed are published and where to read them

• Ability to follow others' publications 

Any publications you add to your Publons profile will then be linked to your Web of Science ResearcherID when anyone searches for you on Web of Science.  Please allow up to two weeks for changes you make on Publons to be reflected on Web of Science.

Learn more about  Publons Researcher Profiles 

What it is 

Google Scholar Citations is a way for authors to keep track of citations to their research output, owned by Google. Google Scholar Citations is powered by the Google Scholar search engine, which allows a researcher to find a variety of materials, including peer-reviewed academic journal articles and books, conference proceedings, pre-prints, abstracts, and grey literature. Its coverage of material is broad, but there is no criteria for what gets selected as output you can attribute to your profile. 

Metrics available: h-index, i10-index and the total number of citations. Learn more about citations to your output on Google. 

Your profile is automatically set to private and is visible to only you unless you make your profile public. 

How to get a Google Scholar Citations Profile

• You must create a Google account to set up a profile. If you already have a Google account, you can sign-in by visiting: https://scholar.google.com
  • Details on setting up your profile are available on the Google Scholar Citations website 
  • If you want make your profile is included in Google Scholar search results, add you enter your university email address. 

Adding works to your profile 

Google Scholar Citations automatically searches the Google Scholar index for scholarly output that is attributed to your name. 

• Do you see output on your profile that is not yours? Google Scholar uses a a statistical model to try to tell different authors apart but such automatic processes are not always accurate. It is recommended that you review the articles in your profile and remove the ones that are written by others. 
• Do you want to add missing material? You can search for material or add output manually. Your citation metrics will update immediately. 

Does Google Scholar Citations work with ORCID or other researcher identifiers? 

• No, Google Scholar Citations is not interoperable with other tools. 
• You can export content from your profile as a BibTEX file in order to add the content to your ORCID record or Publons profile.