Promotions at Sands based on ‘talent and ability to manage’

Chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands Corp., Sheldon Adelson, promises that his company, through subsidiary Sands China Ltd., remains committed to hiring locals for their Macau properties. At a sharing session with students from the Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) yesterday, Mr Adelson also recalled that promotions to managerial posts will only be granted to those who show talent and ability to manage other people.
“We want to promote local people but you have to bring the talent and the expertise to be able to manage other people,” he said, stressing that those wishing to be promoted to higher posts within the company need “to learn how to be a good manager.”
Asked by an IFT student about the number of locals his company recruits, Sheldon Adelson said that 72 percent of team members are from Macau. However, he recalled how difficult it is to hire professionals from different fields in Macau, due to its low unemployment rate.
“The problem is there’s a 1.7 percent unemployment rate here. There’s nobody to hire. We are looking for people for construction and operation for the Parisian. We need thousands more,” he stressed.
Asked about what kind of attributes one should have to build success, Mr Adelson said promptly: “willingness to take a risk.”  He concluded by saying, “one is the ability to manage other people and get other people to follow you. I want to encourage my employees to take chances because without taking a chance and without embracing risk, you won’t make progress. That’s how you become a good manager: you set the example of doing something right.”
The gaming tycoon will take over as Sands China Ltd. chief executive officer on March 6, the company announced last month. He will succeed current CEO Edward Tracy, who recently announced his retirement.