A four-person committee of Steamship Authority governing board and port council members will interview four executive search firms for the job of finding a new general manager to replace Robert Davis, who last year agreed to step aside and take an advisory position with the boat line.

Three of the finalists — Flagship Management of Florida and Ireland, United Kingdom-based Stonefort Marine Talent and Faststream Recruitment Group, which operates around the world — are maritime specialists, Steamship human resources director Janice Kennefick said this week.

The fourth, Frank Jay and Associates of Texas, works mainly in the aviation and aerospace industries but also cited maritime experience in its proposal, Ms. Kennefick told the search committee at an online meeting Wednesday.

Steamship Authority board members James Malkin of Chilmark and Robert Jones of Barnstable and port council members Robert Munier of Falmouth and Nathaniel Lowell of Nantucket make up the committee, which reviewed the firms’ proposals before directing Ms. Kennefick to set up interviews.

Terence Kenneally, the Steamship Authority’s general counsel, also joined Wednesday’s meeting along with Mr. Davis, whose presence drew criticism during the public comment session.

“There’s been a lot of discussion out in the community that it does not seem appropriate to have Bob Davis sitting in on these discussions,” said Margaret Hannemann of the newly-formed SSA Citizens’ Action Group. 

Mr. Malkin, the committee’s chair, said that the Steamship Authority staffers were there to provide advice as the search process gets under way.

“When we do get into individual candidates, it’s certainly my intention that Mr. Davis will not be part of the selection of the candidates,” Mr. Malkin said.

Ms. Hannemann also called for a larger search committee with more community input, and urged the Steamship Authority to consider engaging a more prominent search firm such as Korn Ferry, a management consultancy with offices in more than 50 countries.

Ms. Kennefick said she had initially contacted seven companies, but two chose not to submit proposals.

A third, Raftelis Financial Consultants of Natick, has already worked with the Steamship Authority to develop a strategic plan, but committee members noted its lack of maritime experience and ruled out an interview for the general manager search.

Interviews with the search firms will be held in public sessions, Mr. Malkin said.