Isidro F. Aguillo Caño: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 10:03, 11 August 2026

Isidro Francisco Aguillo Caño (1963-) is a Spanish information scientist.

Life

Isidro Francisco Aguillo Caño was born in 1963 in Haro, La Rioja, Spain.

He graduated in Biological Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) in 1985, obtained a Master's in Information Sciences in 1992 from the University Carlos III de Madrid, and a Diploma of Advanced Studies (2007) from the University of Granada.

In 1983 he joined the Department of Vertebrate Zoology at UCM under the direction of Dr. Manuel Fernández Cruz, developing studies on avian nomenclature and speciation processes in the Western Palearctic.

In 1994 he joined the Center for Scientific Information and Documentation (CINDOC), part of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), in Madrid. Under the direction of Prof. José Ramón Pérez Álvarez Ossorio, he was in charge of the Spanish National Focal Point of the EU programs IMPACT, INFO2000 and MLIS from DGXIII of the European Commission. These programs funded the promotion of Internet and Web access.

After founding the Internet Laboratory at CINDOC, his work focuses on webometrics, bibliometrics, scientometrics, scholarly communication, and research evaluation. He is known for his contributions to the development of web-based indicators for evaluating the online presence and visibility of universities and research institutions.

He is the founder and editor of the journal Cybermetrics (1997-2015), the first electronic-only journal published by CSIC, which was the top Spanish publication in the SJR Social Sciences platform. He can be considered one the founders of the cybermetrics / webometrics discipline.

In 2000 he was appointed to the Spanish Office for Science and Technology (SOST) in Brussels (Belgium) during the preparation of the 5th Framework Programme, which allowed the setting up of international consortia for the EU-funded projects EICSTES (EU maps of academic web presence), WISER (pan-European webometrics), ACUMEN (relevant for the introduction of the narrative CV), and RISIS.

In 2002 he was granted a Metcalfe Visiting Professorship at the University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia). The Ranking Web of Universities was developed there, and was first published, inspired by the Shanghai Ranking, in 2004. It is the largest ranking of higher education institutions, with more than 32,000 indexed institutions, published twice a year.

Other websites developed by him include the Ranking Web of Research Centers (2006-2020), the Ranking Web of Hospitals (2008-2020), the Ranking Web of Repositories (2008-2025), the Ranking Web of Business Schools (2008-2015), and the Rankings of Spanish Researchers and Foreign Researchers in Spain (2022-).

Since 2016 he has been a member of the Institute of Public Goods and Policies (IPP) at CSIC, and in 2025 he was appointed technical deputy director of the Institute, responsible for the development of the local LLM infrastructure and for AI training and adoption.

He is a data collector and supplier for third parties such as SCImago Lab (MENA Research Centers Ranking, SCImago Media Ranking, and SCImago Institutions Ranking), the QS Quacquarelli Symonds Group (Regional University Rankings), and the IESA-CSIC SILICE database.

He has published 6 books and more than 200 papers, 80 of them in internationally indexed journals, on research topics such as evaluation of the scientific activity, electronic journals, open access initiatives, and especially webometrics and web indicators. His teaching activity comprises more than 400 workshops, seminars, and conferences at more than 120 universities and professional societies worldwide.

He has been included in the list of the World's Top 2% Scientists. Stanford Elsevier Ranking (2019-2026).

Other positions held

Expert Group “ERA Indicators and ERA Monitoring”. European Commission. DG Research. 2009
Working Group on Monitoring and Indicators on Human Resources and Mobility. European Commission. DG Research. 2009
Organizing Committee 11th International Society of Scientometrics and Informetrics (ISSI) Conference
He has been member (Vocal) of the Executive Committee of the Asociación Española de Terminología and of Federación Española de Sociedades de Archivística, Biblioteconomía y Documentación (FESABID)

Awards

In 2009 he was invested Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Indonesia.
In 2015 he was awarded an Doctor Honoris Causa by the National Research Nuclear University Moscow
In 2025 he was recognized as Professor Honoris Causa of the University AAB in Prishtina.
The Honorary Medal of the IREG Observatory on Academic Ranking and Excellence (2020) and the Honorary Medal of the Sociedad Española de Información y Documentación Científica SEDIC (2026) were granted for recognizing his contributions to these organizations.

Contributions

Isidro F. Aguillo Caño is one of the pioneers and leading figures in the development of cybermetrics and webometrics as fields of information science. He contributed to establishing methods for measuring and evaluating the presence, visibility, impact, and communication of academic and research institutions on the Web, particularly through the analysis of links, web presence, and online mentions.

In 1997, he founded Cybermetrics, an electronic-only peer-reviewed journal, helping to consolidate the emerging discipline.

In 2004, he created the Ranking Web of Universities (Webometrics), which became one of the world's largest international rankings of higher education institutions. He subsequently developed similar rankings covering research centers, repositories, hospitals, and business schools. https://www.webometrics.org

Through hundreds of workshops, seminars, and conferences, he has contributed substantially to the international dissemination and teaching of webometric methods. His work has helped establish the Web as a significant source of evidence for assessing scientific communication, institutional performance, and research visibility.

Selected papers

Aguillo, I. F. (2012). Is Google Scholar useful for bibliometrics? A webometric analysis. Scientometrics, 91 (2), pp. 343-351. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-011-0582-8
Aguillo, I. F., Bar-Ilan, J.; Levene, M.; Ortega, J. L. (2010). Comparing university rankings. Scientometrics, 85 (1), pp. 243-256. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-010-0190-z
Aguillo, I. F.; Ortega, J. L.; Fernández, M.; Utrilla, A. M. (2010). Indicators for a webometric ranking of open access repositories. Scientometrics, 82 (3), pp. 477-486. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-010-0183-y
Aguillo, I. F. (2009). Measuring the institution's footprint in the web. Library Hi Tech, 27 (4), pp. 540-556. http://doi.org/10.1108/073788309

Books

Mas-Bleda, Amalia; Aguillo, Isidro F. (2015). La web social como nuevo medio de comunicación y evaluación científica. Barcelona: Editorial UOC. ISBN: 9788490649220
Orduña-Malea, Enrique; Aguillo, Isidro F. (2014). Cibermetría. Midiendo el espacio red. Barcelona: Editorial UOC. ISBN: 9788490642337
Barré, Remi; Aguillo, Isidro F. et al. (2009). ERA indicators and monitoring. Expert Group Report. Brussels: European Commission. EUR 24171EN.

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 '''Isidro Francisco Aguillo Caño''' was born in 1963 in Haro, La Rioja, Spain.
-[[File:Aguillo_Isidro-F-4.jpg|220px|title=Isidro F. Aguillo Caño|alt=Isidro F. Aguillo Caño|thumb|Isidro F. Aguillo Caño (2018). <br>Credit: T. Baiget]]
+<span title="Isidro F. Aguillo Caño">[[File:Aguillo_Isidro-F-4.jpg|220px|thumb|alt=Isidro F. Aguillo Caño|Isidro F. Aguillo Caño (2018).<br>Credit: T. Baiget]]</span>
-He graduated in Biological Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) in 1985, obtained a Master's in Information Sciences in 1992 from the University Carlos III de Madrid, and a Diploma of Advances Studies (2007) from the University of Granada.
+He graduated in Biological Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) in 1985, obtained a Master's in Information Sciences in 1992 from the University Carlos III de Madrid, and a Diploma of Advanced Studies (2007) from the University of Granada.
 In 1983 he joined the Department of Vertebrate Zoology at UCM under the direction of Dr. Manuel Fernández Cruz, developing studies on avian nomenclature and speciation processes in the Western Palearctic.
-In 1994 he joined the Center for Scientific Information and Documentation (CINDOC), part of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), in Madrid. Under the direction of Prof. [[José Ramón Pérez Álvarez-Ossorio|José Ramón Pérez Álvarez Ossorio]], he was in charge of the Spanish National Focal Point of the EU programs IMPACT, INFO2000 and MLIS from DGXIII of the European Commission.
+In 1994 he joined the Center for Scientific Information and Documentation (CINDOC), part of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), in Madrid. Under the direction of Prof. [[José Ramón Pérez Álvarez-Ossorio|José Ramón Pérez Álvarez Ossorio]], he was in charge of the Spanish National Focal Point of the EU programs IMPACT, INFO2000 and MLIS from DGXIII of the European Commission. These programs funded the promotion of Internet and Web access.
-These programs funded the promotion of Internet and Web access. After founding the Internet Laboratory at CINDOC, his work focuses on webometrics, bibliometrics, scientometrics, scholarly communication, and research evaluation. He is known for his contributions to the development of web-based indicators for evaluating the online presence and visibility of universities and research institutions.
+After founding the Internet Laboratory at CINDOC, his work focuses on webometrics, bibliometrics, scientometrics, scholarly communication, and research evaluation. He is known for his contributions to the development of web-based indicators for evaluating the online presence and visibility of universities and research institutions.
 He is the founder and editor of the journal Cybermetrics (1997-2015), the first electronic-only journal published by CSIC, which was the top Spanish publication in the SJR Social Sciences platform. He can be considered one the founders of the cybermetrics / webometrics discipline.
@@ Line 22: / Line 22: @@
 Other websites developed by him include the Ranking Web of Research Centers (2006-2020), the Ranking Web of Hospitals (2008-2020), the Ranking Web of Repositories (2008-2025), the Ranking Web of Business Schools (2008-2015), and the Rankings of Spanish Researchers and Foreign Researchers in Spain (2022-).
-Since 2016 he has been a member of the Institute de Public Goods and Policies (IPP) at CSIC, and in 2025 he was appointed technical deputy director of the Institute, responsible for the development of the local LLM infrastructure and for AI training and adoption.
+Since 2016 he has been a member of the Institute of Public Goods and Policies (IPP) at CSIC, and in 2025 he was appointed technical deputy director of the Institute, responsible for the development of the local LLM infrastructure and for AI training and adoption.
-He is a data collector and supplier for third parties such as SCImago Lab (MENA Research Centers Ranking, SCImago Media Ranking, and SCImago Institutions Ranking), the QS Quacquarelli Symonds Group (Regional University Rankings), and  the IESA-CSIC SILICE database
+He is a data collector and supplier for third parties such as SCImago Lab (MENA Research Centers Ranking, SCImago Media Ranking, and SCImago Institutions Ranking), the QS Quacquarelli Symonds Group (Regional University Rankings), and  the IESA-CSIC SILICE database.
-He has published 6 books and more than 200 papers, 80 of them in internationally indexed journals, on research topics such as evaluation of the scientific activity, electronic journals, open access initiatives, and specially webometrics and web indicators. His teaching activity comprises more than 400 workshops, seminars, and conferences at more than 120 universities and professional societies worldwide.
+He has published 6 books and more than 200 papers, 80 of them in internationally indexed journals, on research topics such as evaluation of the scientific activity, electronic journals, open access initiatives, and especially webometrics and web indicators. His teaching activity comprises more than 400 workshops, seminars, and conferences at more than 120 universities and professional societies worldwide.
-He has been included in the list of the World's Top 2% Scientist. Stanford Elsevier Ranking (2019-2026).
+He has been included in the list of the World's Top 2% Scientists. Stanford Elsevier Ranking (2019-2026).
 == Other positions held ==
@@ Line 40: / Line 40: @@
 * In 2009 he was invested Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Indonesia.
-* In 2015 he was recognized Doctor Honoris Causa by the National Research Nuclear University Moscow
+* In 2015 he was awarded an Doctor Honoris Causa by the National Research Nuclear University Moscow
 * In 2025 he was recognized as Professor Honoris Causa of the University AAB in Prishtina.
 * The Honorary Medal of the IREG Observatory on Academic Ranking and Excellence (2020) and the Honorary Medal of the Sociedad Española de Información y Documentación Científica SEDIC (2026) were granted for recognizing his contributions to these organizations.