For Sands China Ltd, it is all about a fun-working environment, with the company constantly pursuing new staff social activities to keep its team members happy

It is a rule of thumb in any human resources book: staff morale has a huge impact on staff performance, the relationship between staff and the company, and satisfaction of customers – happy staff make happy customers. But the main reason why Sands China Ltd is so keen on promoting team members’ social activities goes beyond that – the goal is that everyone feels that they are part of a big family.

As a company, Sands China Ltd has been implementing various new initiatives to engage with its team members. These range from its employee engagement programmes to other special activities, which are more heartfelt, yet light-hearted.

These activities have been established with the sole purpose of building a stronger connection between team members, while also reminding them that they are Sand China Ltd’s most important assets.

From the perspective of Sands China Ltd’s management, such initiatives demonstrate a commitment to looking for ways to inject fun and added enjoyment into the workplace, and confirm its dedication to becoming the employer of choice in Macau.

Talent parade

High among those programmes is the ‘Start Your Show’ initiative. Already running for two years, it has been very well received by team members, featuring acts ranging from singing, dancing, kung fu and playing musical instruments.

This year, the 60-plus contestants came from The Venetian Macao, Sands Macao and The Plaza Macao. They ranged from a Sands Rewards Club staff who had been with the company for only two months, to a Gaming Operations staff who has worked for the company since it opened.

The final took place on April 1, with the ten finalists stepping into the CotaiArena, onto the very same stage used by several international artists, in order for them to feel like a star.

To demonstrate support for the finalists and set the stage for audience participation, the Sands China management team performed Queen’s famous song “We Will Rock You”.

Luis Lourenco from the Surveillance department, who had hot-footed his way to performing the locking and breaking street dance, was crowned the champion of the contest. He took home a Hartford Mini 125 M/T Motorbike, MOP10,000 hot cash and, of course, a trophy.

First and second runners-up went to Andy Sun Hongbin from Sands Paiza and Eliezer Agoyos Castro from Housekeeping – Andy performed the Wonder Girls’ hit song “Nobody” and Eliezer sang Queen’s “Too Much Love will Kill You”.

In addition, all staff members of Sands China Ltd also played a part in the decision, voting for the winner of People’s Choice Award from March 21–31.
The winner was Ou Zhi Fang from Housekeeping, who performed a Kung Fu choreography.

“We are stunned by the performances and the talents we have in our team,” said Edward Tracy, President and Chief Operating Officer of Sands China Ltd. “We are very pleased with the success of ‘Start Your Show’, from the preparations by a dedicated organizing committee, the support from contestants’ superiors and their peers, to the final show, this great initiative has a strong force to pull everyone together. A lot of hard work has been put in, though with so much fun along the way. Our executive team is very supportive of this event and we all look forward to another great show next year.”

Something different

Before the ‘Start Your Show’ 2011 final, Sands China Ltd had already offered something different to start the year of 2011 to its team members. Three Toyota Estima Hybrids, worth about MOP1.5 million in total, were given away in a team members-only lucky draw conducted in January. Another nine short-listed winners each walked away with MOP10,000 cash.

One of the lucky car winners said, “It is unbelievable. I’ve always hoped but never thought I would be a lucky draw winner. It is a great gift to start the year. Thank you to my company. I cannot wait to take my family for a ride.”

For Sands China Ltd’s executive team, it is an important part of its job to show appreciation to the company’s staff. Last November, on Thanksgiving Day, all the executive team members went to the team dining room to distribute pumpkin pie. Besides roast turkey dinners and flowers, there was also a lot of fun.

The same happened on the seventh day of Chinese New Year; again all executive team members celebrated the festivities in the team dining room.

Sands China Ltd organised a special gathering, with birthday buns for everyone. According to Chinese tradition, this day is believed to be “everybody’s birthday”.

Executive team members also wrote “hui chun”, small messages or wishes that people hang in and around their homes and offices, hoping for good fortune during the year.

Keeping engagement

Aside from these special initiatives, Sands China Ltd offers on a regular basis, a wide array of employee engagement programmes called the “my” series. Each programme is designed specifically for team members. The goal is to boost staff morale through interactive activities.

They are quite diverse, in order to cater to everyone’s interests. There is the myClub initiative, a series of membership-based interest groups designed to help staff to chill out, including a range of recreational and sports activities.

Sands China Ltd myClub team members also enjoy exclusive discounts on a wide variety of goods and services at more than 150 selected outlets in Macau through the myDiscount employee engagement programme.

Being one of the biggest companies in Macau, Sands China Ltd employs a culturally diverse team. The company celebrates that diversity though its myFestival employee engagement programme, which lets team members experience other cultures through the culinary delights of their colleague’s home country.

Another employee engagement programme available at Sands China Ltd is myWorkshop. Jointly organised by human resources and a rotation of departments within the company, the programme offers a series of free workshops dedicated to enriching team member’s life experience, offering them the chance to acquire basic know-how about topics of their interest.

Sands China Ltd believes giving its team members the recognition they deserve throughout all these initiatives is a fundamental part of its mission. Success is a team effort.