Nearly 150 local SME suppliers have completed the programme to date
(Macao, July 9, 2019) – A group of local SME suppliers graduated from Sands China’s Sands Procurement Academy June 24 with a ceremony at The Venetian® Macao’s Adelson Advanced Education Centre. It is the fifth group of local SMEs to graduate from the training initiative.
The Sands Procurement Academy is co-organised with the Macao Chamber of Commerce and the Macau Productivity and Technology Centre (CPTTM), and shares business knowledge and skills to further the development of local SME suppliers. The aim of the programme is to help them gain experience and capacity for working with large-scale international corporations like Sands China. The academy specifically targets four categories of local SME suppliers: small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), micro-enterprises, Macao young entrepreneurs, and “Made-in-Macao” enterprises.
The training programme is the first of its kind in the industry. Focused on practical knowledge for participating SMEs, the programme has received much positive feedback from its graduates.
This latest group of 28 graduating suppliers had enrolled in the academy at Sands China’s SME Open Day in April. Participating companies can send up to two representatives each to enrol in the academy.
Including the latest group of graduates, nearly 150 local SME suppliers have now graduated from the academy. Graduating suppliers receive a certificate and are given preferential procurement opportunities under otherwise equal circumstances.
“Investing in Macao’s local SME suppliers is a beneficial endeavour, as it supports the growth of local enterprises, the success of Sands China, and the development of Macao,” said Charlie Cai, vice president of procurement and supply chain for Venetian Macau Limited. “The Sands Procurement Academy is an important way for the company to take advantage of its resources for the benefit of the wider community, in its efforts to contribute to Macao’s continued development as a world centre of tourism and leisure.”
The June 24 graduation ceremony was attended by Shuen Ka Hung, director-general of CPTTM; Choi Tat Meng, vice president of the board of directors of the Macao Chamber of Commerce; Sam Chongnin, vice president of corporate communications and community affairs for Venetian Macau Limited; Mimi Ooi, executive director of procurement and supply chain for Venetian Macau Limited; and Lourence Ho, director of training and development for Venetian Macau Limited.
The Sands Procurement Academy supports the third pillar of the company’s F.I.T. programme, which offers Financial Support, Invitational Matching, and Training and Development. Aimed at both existing and new local Sands China suppliers, F.I.T. is part of Sands China’s Local Small, Medium and Micro Suppliers Support Programme, and seeks to continually increase and strengthen procurement between Sands China and local SME suppliers by enhancing their capabilities.
Local SME suppliers in the academy learn through tailor-made practical training modules, which are delivered by lecturers with various areas of expertise. Modules cover seven topics: effective warehouse operations, quality assurance, logistics management, procurement process and system overview, procurement contracts, supplier code of conduct, and the eight disciplines (8D) model of problem solving. The latter is led by a CPTTM lecturer.
Sands China’s Local Small, Medium and Micro Suppliers Support Programme is in line with the Macao government’s initiative to “buy local” and demonstrates Sands China’s commitment to supporting local enterprises as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility efforts. It is part of Sands China’s supplier relationship management strategy, which guides the company’s long-standing effort to support local suppliers, whom it views as its strategic partners.
Photo caption: A group of 28 local SME suppliers graduates from the Sands Procurement Academy June 24 at The Venetian Macao’s Adelson Advanced Education Centre. The initiative helps local suppliers gain experience and capacity for working with large-scale enterprises like Sands China Ltd.
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About Sands China Ltd.
Sands China Ltd. (HKEx: 1928, Sands China or the Company) is a Cayman Islands registered company and is listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited. Sands China is the largest operator of integrated resorts in Macao. The Company’s integrated resorts on the Cotai Strip comprise The Venetian® Macao, The Plaza® Macao, Sands® Cotai Central and The Parisian Macao – with The Londoner Macao to be reintroduced as The Londoner Macao. The Company also owns and operates Sands® Macao on the Macao peninsula. The Company’s portfolio features a diversified mix of leisure and business attractions and transportation operations, including large meeting and convention facilities; a wide range of restaurants; shopping malls; world-class entertainment at the Cotai Arena, The Venetian Theatre, The Parisian Theatre, the Sands Cotai Theatre and the Sands Theatre; and a high-speed Cotai Water Jet ferry service between Hong Kong and Macao. The Company’s Cotai Strip portfolio has the goal of contributing to Macao’s transformation into a world centre of tourism and leisure. Sands China is a subsidiary of global resort developer Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS).
For more information, please visit www.sandschina.com.
