Purpose Going beyond the usual approach of measuring port performance – focusing on the efficiency of port operations – this paper aims to look into shipping lines and other port users’ perceptions on port performance. Design/methodology/approach The paper develops a framework measuring the perceptions of port users (i.e. shipping companies, shippers, etc.) on port performance. A typology of elements that shape port users’ perceptions has been developed with an eye on capturing the peculiarities of different port markets. Based on this typology, a tool to assess users’ perspectives, and subsequently evaluate, any given port has been developed. The tool provides port authorities the flexibility they need for customized approaches. The developed evaluation mechanism has been tested on a group of European seaports, and the results are presented by this study. Findings The framework and its pilot application unveil the key parameters that port users take into consideration when evaluating the effectiveness component of port performance. Moreover, the importance and evaluation ratings of specific performance parameters allow for a GAP analysis of the collected data. Research limitations/implications The paper advances scholarly and practical discussion on how of port users’ perceptions can be a valuable tool for port performance measurement. Practical implications The proposed tool can be a valuable add-on for port authorities to evaluate their performance from the port users’ point of view and take the necessary actions to improve it. Also, the tool can be used for the evaluation of a new process, infrastructure. The evaluation of port users’ perception of port performance can and must be part of a European ports observatory, as it is a set of indicators that clearly reflects the satisfaction of port users by engaging their view on port performance issues, instead of relying almost exclusively on port-generated data. Originality/value The paper develops a framework for measuring port user’s perception on port performance, which is flexible and can be applied in any port.

中文翻译：

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从用户角度衡量端口性能

目的本文超越了通常的衡量港口绩效的方法（侧重于港口运营的效率），旨在研究航运公司和其他港口用户对港口绩效的看法。设计/方法/方法本文开发了一个框架，用于衡量港口用户（即船运公司，托运人等）对港口绩效的看法。着眼于捕捉不同港口市场的特殊性，已经形成了塑造港口用户看法的要素类型。基于这种类型，开发了一种工具，用于评估用户的观点并随后进行评估，以评估任何给定的端口。该工具为港口当局提供了定制方法所需的灵活性。发达的评估机制已在一组欧洲海港进行了测试，结果由本研究提出。结果该框架及其试验应用程序揭示了端口用户在评估端口性能的有效性组件时要考虑的关键参数。此外，特定性能参数的重要性和评估等级允许对收集的数据进行GAP分析。研究局限性/意义本文对学术界和实践界的讨论进行了讨论，以探讨港口用户的看法如何成为衡量港口绩效的宝贵工具。实际意义提议的工具可以成为港口管理机构从港口用户的角度评估其绩效并采取必要措施加以改进的宝贵补充。而且，该工具可用于评估新流程，基础架构。评估港口用户对港口绩效的看法可以而且必须成为欧洲港口观察站的一部分，因为它是一组指标，通过让他们对港口绩效问题的看法清晰地反映出港口用户的满意度，而不是仅仅依靠港口使用端口生成的数据。独创性/价值本文开发了一个框架，用于衡量端口用户对端口性能的看法，该框架非常灵活，可以应用于任何端口。