Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report an explicit taxonomy of maritime operations (MO) to guide harbour masters (HMs) of smaller ports in planning more sustainable operations.
Design/methodology/approach
This research presents strategies for building theory to promote more sustainable port management in a two-stage research design. Starting from a base taxonomy in research Stage 1, ethnographic content analysis (ECA) of a sparse prior literature on MO generated a tentative taxonomy. In Stage 2, interviews to capture tacit practitioner knowledge refined the tentative taxonomy into a credible practitioner-informed final taxonomy.
Findings
ECA offers researchers a powerful tool to analyse complex operational problems. In this paper MOs are represented in an explicit taxonomy.
Practical implications
A final taxonomy of MOs guides sustainability strategy formulation by HMs and assists them to protect vital commercial revenues which serve supply chains and local communities.
Originality/value
An explicit final taxonomy of MO is derived using a novel methodology. The taxonomy guides sustainability strategy formulation and underpins subsequent planning of sustainable development policies.
