Content Writer: Janice Chew • Friday, 26/08/2026 - 00:10:57 - AM
SJM Resorts has awarded MOP20,000 (around US$2,475) each to 36 children of employees under its annual scholarship programme, continuing a long-running initiative that connects employee welfare with Macau’s wider talent-development goals.
The awards were presented at the 22nd SJM Scholarship Award Ceremony at Grand Lisboa Macau in August 2026.
Supporting Employees Beyond the Workplace
Among this year’s 36 recipients, 10 are new scholars, while the remaining awards support students already participating in the programme. The new recipients are pursuing higher education in Macau, Hong Kong and mainland China.
Their areas of study include:
- Technology and innovation
- Healthcare
- Financial services
- Other disciplines linked to Macau’s future economic development
These fields are particularly relevant as Macau continues trying to diversify its economy and develop talent beyond its traditional tourism and gaming industries. The Macao government’s current talent programmes also specifically identify areas including high technology, big health and modern finance as priority sectors.
More Than a Scholarship
SJM’s scholarship programme has been running for more than two decades and is targeted specifically at children of employees.
The company said hundreds of employee families have benefited over the years.
For comparison, SJM reported in 2025 that its scholarship programme had already supported more than 320 students, with cumulative scholarship payments exceeding MOP15 million.
The programme therefore represents more than a one-off corporate social responsibility event. It has developed into a long-term employee benefit that can support families across several years of university education.
What Daisy Ho Said
Daisy Ho, Managing Director of SJM Resorts, told this year’s recipients that receiving the scholarship was not only recognition of their academic performance, but also represented SJM’s confidence in their future development.
She encouraged students to remain curious, work hard and continue pursuing excellence, while eventually using their knowledge to contribute to Macau and the wider community after graduation.
Her remarks also reflect a broader theme increasingly seen among Macau’s integrated resort operators: talent development is extending beyond training existing casino and hospitality employees toward developing the next generation of local professionals.
From Education to Employment
SJM’s talent strategy goes beyond scholarships.
The company has also developed school-enterprise partnerships, youth internship programmes, professional training and career advancement programmes, creating a pathway that can potentially take young people from education into employment.
Macau itself is placing greater emphasis on developing talent capable of supporting economic diversification, including technology, healthcare, finance, culture and other emerging industries.
That makes programmes such as SJM’s scholarship increasingly relevant to the city’s longer-term workforce needs.
Insights
The financial value of each scholarship may appear relatively modest compared with the scale of Macau’s gaming industry, but the long-term value is in employee engagement and talent development.
Benefits aimed at employees’ families can create a stronger connection between a company and its workforce than traditional compensation alone.
At the same time, the subjects being studied by the new recipients — particularly technology, healthcare and finance — show how Macau’s future workforce requirements are changing.
For integrated resort operators such as SJM, tomorrow’s talent requirements will increasingly extend beyond dealers, hotel operations and food and beverage.
Technology specialists, digital professionals, finance talent, healthcare and wellness expertise, marketing professionals and cross-industry managers will all become more important as Macau continues diversifying its economy.
SJM's scholarship programme therefore does two things at once: it supports the families who helped build the company today, while helping educate some of the people who could contribute to Macau’s economy tomorrow.