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Thursday, Sept. 16, 2010 | 10:12 a.m.
Corey Sanders
Gamal Aziz
Scott Sibella
Felix Rappaport
Renee West
Chuck Bowling
MGM Resorts International announced several senior management changes today, including the promotion of a longtime executive to the company’s No. 2 post.
The company’s board of directors has promoted Corey Sanders, a 16-year gaming veteran with MGM Resorts, to chief operating officer of the company. Prior to the promotion, Sanders served as COO of MGM Resorts’ core brand properties and also held the position of chief financial officer of MGM Grand and executive vice president of operations.
MGM Resorts has been without a chief operating officer for nearly two years since then-COO Jim Murren stepped into the role of chairman and chief executive when Terri Lanni retired in November 2008.
In addition to Sanders’ promotion, the board promoted Gamal Aziz to president and chief executive officer of MGM Resorts International so he can solely focus on expanding the company internationally, the company said.
The casino operator is acquiring the management of hotel developments in Vietnam, Dubai and Egypt through a subsidiary. The business plan calls for MGM Resorts Hospitality to acquire the management of 42 hotels around the world in the next 10 years.
Aziz has served in a dual role since the hospitality division began in May 2007, leading the subsidiary and continuing his responsibilities as president of MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“This is very exciting news for our company at many levels, not the least of which is that everyone involved is already part of the team. This is certainly proof of the amazing bench strength of this company,” spokesman Alan Feldman told the Sun.
MGM Resorts also announced the shuffling of several Las Vegas property executives.
Mirage President Scott Sibella will be relieving Aziz of his role at MGM Grand, moving into the president and chief operating officer spot. Felix Rappaport, former president of Luxor and Excalibur, has been named president of the Mirage.
Former Mandalay Bay President Renee West will move to the Luxor and Excalibur as president, and Chuck Bowling, the former executive vice president of sales and marketing, has been named president of Mandalay Bay.
The company also announced changes outside of Las Vegas.
MGM Resorts also announced that George Corchis, the current president of the company’s Mississippi operations, has been promoted to president of MGM Resorts' regional properties. MGM Grand Senior Vice President of Marketing Steve Zanella will take over as the general manager of MGM Grand Detroit.
John Shigely, currently the executive vice president of MGM Grand, has been tapped to spearhead MGM Resorts’ gaming interests in Asia, primarily in Macau.
Same O, Same O, no new blood or new ideas, just musical executive chairs. Mr. Sanders has been unofficially serving in the COO capacity the past two years, so how has that worked out for MGM Resorts? Also, Ms. West going from Mandalay Bay to the Luxor doesn't seem like much of a promotion to me. Not surprising though, she completely ruined the Primm properties when she was in charge out there.
How Bobby Baldwin still has a job after so many screw ups at City Center is beyond me. I can still smell that awful sewer odor near the entrance to the Mandarin. Harmon has become a 1 billion dollar sign...and that's about all.
Crystals is dead. Terrible place. Can't hold a candle to The Forum Shops. I just don't understand how this guy still has a job. He should go back to playing poker for a living.
Congratulations to everyone on their promotions.
The emloyees at Excalibur are ECSTATIC with excitment to have their beloved Renee West back! The best of luck to the Mirage employees - Felix has a lot to be desired for.
Wow. Did they consult Harry Reid first?
Fat cats smiling with a fake face but changing nothing, firing the hard working bottom feeders, tighteting up on the slot machines , raising the room rates and then receiving the Golden Parachute after their period is over without significant improvement in their section. That's my prediction on how the episode will continue.
Greetings
Yep, same good ole boys and girls, juiced into the biz, practically bankrupt a company and keep on promoting each other for poorly performing.
They've been so successful that everyone got moved up a notch? How much money do they have to lose before there are consequences for anyone besides the lowest paid employees and customers that prefer clean rooms?
I did not know about an MGM casino being located in Detroit, where in January 2010, the Department of Labor reported metropolitan Detroit's unemployment rate had risen to 15.3% .
So, therefore what would you expect when winning the jackpot at the slots tournament in Detroit city? A bunch of crack, maybe ...lol?! You got to be kidding, or is it all about laundering of money in the end? -Who cares about the why where when anyway:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detroit
@Boris*:
Greetings from the Banana_Joe, who cannot meet you neither at "the spa" nor anywhere else, because they tossed him and he got sent home due to some self-caused visa issue, you know...
Chuck-Norris
thanks for the forwarded greetings. Anyways, I am not frequenting spas these days. Gotta prepare myself for my videopoker and texas hold'em game. No time for leisure these days.
In a newspaper article as of today, over here in Switzerland, it's written that every 7th US citizen must live under extremely tough conditions. The strong and powerful nation on the brick of collaps? Maybe yes. The debt load of your system is so huge that it is questionable whether the US will ever be able to dig iteself out of the mysery. To blame people about major casinos to be profitable may a bit inapropriate, may be, but paying millions plus huge bonusses for these fat cats is an insult under these conditions. Simply by taking a look at these fake smiles on the pictures it tells everything. Very few people with juice helped each other into good positions, probably people without real knowledge or understanding how to run casinos properly, but knowing well how to sell themselves and collect the big dough.
I decided to boycott all MGM casinos on my next trip. Wait a second. I might use the restrom and watch a football match in the sportsbook,but without spending one single dime. This company doesn't deserve my business.
Greetings from Switzerland
Wishing you all the best of luck with your gambling business, although I wouldn't put it that way, I mean...
I remember how the Banana_Joe once talked about an awesome video roulette experience, something about ten against the machine at the Vegas MGM Grand casino. Must have been kind of quite a thrilling action for him to play there with all the other unknown players against that wide-screen video roulette super-computer.
Chuck-Norris.You sound somewhat related to this Joe of the Banana-Nation. ....or did you perhaps change teh log-in name? lol )
From Switzerland
Boris
p.s. there is no computerized technique to beat the roulette wheel today. The wheels have become tehnically so good that the ball eventually lands in a section of the wheel that has been dertermined based on a 99.99 per cent chaos movement. With or without computer help, you stand no chance to beat the wheel. So much about roulette dreams.
sandy_astroglide: "They've been so successful that everyone got moved up a notch?"
Well said!
Great job all around--lets see--12 billion or so in debt, no Singapore casino and 1/2 a Macau property--but 9 casinos in one market???? 8.5 billion and counting spent on probably the biggest disaster in casino history. Most casinos now have second mortgages on them. Many of the staff now part time help with no benefits. Good progress-every thing is just wonderful! (unless your a shareholder)
Musical presidents again at their properties. Maybe this company needs to take a look at how many "presidents" it has before it lays off another thousand front line staff this year.
Can't wait to see each one of these people redecorate the properties, yet again, to suit their own tastes. Should only run them another ten billion or so in the hole.
It is obvious that MGM Resorts INternational upper management only wants smiling faces of their manager pictures. I don't see any reason why they can smile. Instead , they should have a bad concience and duck around until they are profitable again. I see that there's no EPS on the MGM stock and EBIT rate is highly negative. I have serious doubt that this will change so soon, even if you bring new puppets in front.
From Switzerland
When these people care about my job, then I will care about theirs.
I bet Sharron Angle thinks they don't need ANY managers at all.. They can just let God run the place...
Sharron Angle supports Ahmadinejad, because he's "a man of faith"...
Hey, Boris, I just remembered the Banana_Joe dreaming about that widescreen video roulette he experienced at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, NV. He just liked these widescreen video games a lot. That's all.
Hey, Mr. Sidney, good joke, but imho slightly off topic, I mean the subject was about MGM management positions and you bring in that crazy politician named Sharron, who thinks that voing for her will in return take her voters closer to God.
TOMD ....
the sewer smell you are talking about is from monte carlo not aria. It's monte carlos cooling fans. I worked on aria and know this
Can Felix now go back to the hard core Mullet that he was rocking as President of Luxor? Can he find a way to bring down Chris Angel to do his Mindfreak show at the Mirage?
These are all people who think the LVCVA has been doing a great job, while their hotel rates and occupancy continue to slip. These are people who have sat on the LVCVA board - not only do they have the chance to make changes to their hotels but they have been in a position to help make changes take place that effect all of the city. No changes made, more hotel rooms added, airlines taking away thousands of seats and they sat on the board saying - you are all doing a great job. Hope they are that kind to their employees that dont produce.
So which President will have the chance of running the hotel that will be sold first? Maybe Chris Angel can make the LVCVA disappear and bring back the business levels of 2005 back to Las Vegas?
how about some high hand jackpots at Aria's poker room???????? they need to do something.
No changes@ City Center???? It must be doing sooo well.....
...and in the end, it'll all be run from China.
I remember when Renee West had blonde hair and she was VP of HR at Primm and got promoted to be president of a MGM prop. Knee pads go along way here in Vegas! Does she still not have a degree in business?
What do you recommend better? Parking at the Bellagio and hopping on the monorail with destination Aria Poker Room or parking at the Aria? I find the Aria parking situation a little complicated and the way from the valed drop off to the poker room is too long. Instead, parking at the Bellagio is convenient, then you take the monorail and then it's just an easy walk to the poker room.
Any comments on that?
Watch this company take off now, baby!
Check please!
What do you mean by take off, baby?
skerlahdee, MGM Resorts International has so much debt that it is a miracle how they want to make a negative EBIT into a positive one. The Vegas exposure in a dried-up market is so huge, so it's questionable how they want to make things turn around. This ain't Singapore, dude. Yeah, have you seen how Genting Singapore has been jacking up lately, even without viagra? lol.
Greetings from Switzerland