ORCID Advocacy Toolkit/Resources/ORCID Advocacy at Liverpool

ORCID Advocacy Case Study: University of Liverpool and the ORCID Affiliation Manager

Institution Profile

  • Institution: University of Liverpool, UK
  • Implementation Timeline: 2023-Present
  • Integration Type: ORCID Affiliation Manager
  • Research Community: 2500+ researchers, technicians and PhD students across 3 faculties
  • Research Focus: Health & Life Sciences, Science & Engineering, Humanities & Social Sciences

Implementation Approach

Affiliation Manager implementation with one major first push and 3-6-monthly updates after

  1. 2016: Joined UK ORCID consortium and began advocacy activities
  2. September 2023: Start planning Affiliation Manager push
  3. October 2023: Preparations of first push
  4. November 2023: First push
  5. January 2024 – present: 3-6-monthly updates with invitations to new starters only

Key Activities

Educational Resources

  • Presentations to staff (e.g. liaison librarians) to understand what ORCID is and does, and explain ORCID Affiliation Manager in case researchers contact them with questions
  • Comprehensive website content with detailed information on ORCID and other researcher profiles
  • Instructional videos demonstrating researcher profile connection
  • Rephrasing ‘push’ into ‘invitation’

Institutional Strategy

No percentage goal was set, but rather an improvement of awareness of ORCID, the invitation to connect the profile with the institution, and in case the researchers didn’t have an ORCID ID yet, the recommendation to create one.

Strategic Campaigns

  • Advertising ORCID generally within comms with simple steps on how to create ORCID ID
  • Email campaign to contact target audience directly with institutional email address to explain Affiliation Manager invitation
  • Mention in faculty, department and network newsletters
  • Images on digital screens around campus advertising ORCID geenrally
  • Invitations set up through Affiliation Manager (rather than manual / mail merge), with automatic follow-up to those whose status was still pending on day 7 and again day 30

Technical Integration Details

  • Request to IT to allow emails from ORCID domain
  • Invitations set up to be sent via Affiliation Manager

Metrics and Outcomes

  • Membership growth by almost 2400+ additional connected IDs in 2023, 1200+ in 2024, 450+ in 2025, bringing the total to 6100+ connected unique IDs (August 2025)
  • Including 45% research students (post-graduate with PhD students specifically targeted)
  • Clear connection spikes following technical implementation and targeted campaigns
  • Significant surge with initial invitation AND automated follow-ups

Challenges and Solutions

Challenge: Reaching the right audience

Solution:

  • Use of HR and PhD lists to send first push to everyone, and for follow-up invitations only new starters
  • Digital screens on campus showing logo and helping with brand-awareness
  • Direct email to all affected staff and students to build trust.

Challenge: Dropped connection rates after initial surge

Solution: Emails to new-starters every 3-6 months, with the same follow up on day 7 and day 30 for ALL pending IDs.

Challenge: Researchers with duplicate ORCID IDs

Solution: Support on webpages in text and video format

Lessons Learned and Recommendations

For Initial Implementation

  • Prioritise advocacy activities before beginning technical integration.
  • Develop comprehensive, easy‑to‑access support resources.
  • Incorporate ORCID into researcher onboarding and training wherever possible (e.g., liaise with Heads of Department, include guidance in PDR materials, add to onboarding webpages).

For Increasing Adoption

  • Use personalised email outreach (e.g., address researchers by name; mail‑merge is acceptable) to improve engagement.
  • Keep instructions short and simple—ideally no more than 3–5 clear steps.
  • Clearly explain the benefits and importance of connecting an ORCID iD.
  • Follow up systematically with non‑responders (automation via Affiliation Manager is effective).

For Sustainability

  • Maintain thorough documentation of processes.
  • Review and update ORCID‑related webpages regularly.
  • Invite new staff to connect their ORCID iD at least every six months to capture late starters.

Observations About ORCID Adoption Over Time

  • Growing recognition of ORCID’s value within the research community.
  • Brand awareness and trust-building
  • Steady integration into routine academic practice, particularly among early‑career researchers.
  • Ongoing enhancements (e.g., funding requirements, peer review recording) increase ORCID’s usefulness.

This case study is based on a blog post by Mareike Wehner (University of Liverpool) and Paloma Marín-Arraiza (ORCID): “Affiliations Around the World: University of Liverpool—United Kingdom” Further detail on the timelines and implemented advocacy strategies can be found in this blog post.

Further resources:

University of Liverpool Open Research pages / Researcher Profiles: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/open-research/researcher-profiles/

Contact Information

Mareike Wehner, former Research Publications Metrics Officer, former Senior Outputs Development Manager, formerly University of Liverpool. Please contact via LinkedIn.

This case study is part of the ORCID Advocacy Toolkit, a community resource for institutions implementing ORCID. The toolkit is maintained by an Editorial Board with representatives from the ORCID community. For questions or to contribute additional case studies, please contact Jisc.

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