What are Certified Service Providers?

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An ORCID service provider (SP) is any organization that provides a product—free or paid—that includes functionality that can authenticate ORCID iDs and update ORCID records. 

SP systems enable hundreds of ORCID members to easily integrate ORCID into local workflows and systems and provide a more consistent user experience for researchers when they encounter ORCID. For these reasons, our members frequently want to know which SPs have enabled which ORCID product functionalities and be assured the implementation adheres to best practices.

To meet those member needs, ORCID instituted Service Provider Certification—a means for ORCID to partner with SPs on their use of ORCID and to make product information more accessible to the ORCID community.

Why get certified?

In addition to enabling ORCID to more effectively communicate a product offering to other institutions, certification entitles ORCID SPs to other benefits, including a reduced go-live time for ORCID members using the certified SP product, easy-to-articulate requirements during tendering and procurement processes, permission to use “ORCID Certified Service Provider” branding, and invitations to participate in ORCID-hosted workshops.

How does the certification process work?

First and foremost, certification is and always will be free. 

During a scheduled, in-person call a representative will review the integration to ensure it meets integration best practice guidelines and minimal requirements for certification. During the call, the SP will be expected to:

• Demonstrate certification requirements are met by either performing a live walkthrough via screencast or providing a link to a product video.
• Provide a link to product documentation aimed at customers (e.g., marketing materials, knowledge base articles, etc.).
• Provide a link to end-user documentation if appropriate (e.g., help pages for those using ORCID within the system). For some, like software vendors, this might not apply.
• Provide a product contact who can receive product related updates from ORCID.

Once certified, the original documentation will be reviewed jointly by the SP and ORCID as part of the annual certification renewal process. If SP functionality has not changed, this check-in ensures there are open lines of communication between SPs and ORCID. It also serves as an opportunity for both to discuss future plans.

What does it take to become certified?

The minimum requirements for SP certification are outlined below:

• Provide the ability for members to manage their own credentials within the SP’s system or have a secure method of transferring credentials (if required).
• Use ORCID members’ credentials to collect authenticated iDs using OAuth.
• Provide an ORCID branded button or link to initiate collection of iDs alongside a help icon or text describing what ORCID is.
• Store the ORCID iD and Access token as a minimum from the token exchange response.
• Store and publicly display the verified ORCID iD as per our Brand Guidelines within the SP system.
• Add and update items on ORCID records such as affiliations, funding, works, peer review, and research resources.
• Make documentation available on what ORCID is, the benefits to the researcher and the wider community, and how the SP’s integration works. This could be in the form of links to ORCID hosted pages if desired.
• Offer the ability to export stored ORCID iDs and token exchange data and put codes in association with user information at the request of ORCID member customers.
• Provide the ability to examine system and API logs for troubleshooting purposes.
• Provide the ability for users to remove their iD from your system.

To learn more about the initial rollout of ORCID’s Service Provider Certification Program, read our blog announcement here.