eBook 1: Chapter 10
What Are Sands China's Critical Business Functions Concerning Business Continuity Management?
Introduction
As an operator of large-scale integrated resorts and casinos in Macao, SC operates across interconnected gaming, hospitality, retail, entertainment, convention, facilities, technology, security, and corporate support activities.
These services depend on complex physical infrastructure, technology platforms, employees, suppliers, utilities, and regulatory arrangements.
Sands China's current corporate and annual reporting describes a multi-use integrated resort and casino operating environment with significant exposure to Macao's travel and tourism economy.
From a BCM perspective, not every activity requires the same recovery priority. Critical Business Functions are those whose disruption could cause significant safety, regulatory, financial, operational, customer, or reputational consequences.
The following table presents a practical initial catalogue of SC's CBFs for BCM planning.
The functions should subsequently be validated through a formal Business Impact Analysis (BIA), where recovery requirements, Maximum Tolerable Period of Disruption (MTPD), Recovery Time Objectives (RTOs), dependencies, and minimum operating resource requirements are confirmed.
Critical Business Functions of Sands China
|
CBF No. |
Critical Business Function |
Business Continuity Relevance and Impact if Disrupted |
Key Dependencies |
Indicative Recovery Priority |
|
CBF-1 |
Casino Gaming Operations |
Prolonged disruption may result in significant revenue loss, regulatory concerns, customer dissatisfaction, and reputational impact. Gaming activities require controlled, secure, and compliant operations. |
Gaming systems, surveillance, gaming equipment, trained employees, cash operations, ICT, power, regulators |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-2 |
Gaming Regulatory Compliance and Concession Obligations |
Failure to maintain regulatory obligations may expose SC to regulatory intervention, penalties, licence or concession concerns, and reputational damage. |
Compliance teams, regulatory records, legal support, gaming systems, management oversight |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-3 |
Hotel and Guest Accommodation Operations |
Disruption may affect large numbers of staying guests, guest safety, accommodation commitments, revenue, and the reputation of SCL's integrated resorts. |
Property systems, front office, housekeeping, utilities, facilities, employees, payment systems |
High |
|
CBF-4 |
Guest Safety, Security and Emergency Response |
Any failure may directly affect life safety, property protection, crowd control, and SCL's ability to manage emergencies and crises. |
Security personnel, surveillance, emergency systems, communications, facilities, external emergency agencies |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-5 |
Surveillance and Gaming Security Operations |
Disruption may reduce SCL's ability to monitor gaming activities, detect irregularities, protect assets, and meet regulatory requirements. |
CCTV, surveillance systems, secure networks, trained personnel, power, data storage |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-6 |
Cash, Cage and Treasury Operations |
Disruption may affect gaming settlements, cash availability, financial controls, customer transactions, and daily resort operations. |
Banking services, cash management systems, secure facilities, finance personnel, ICT |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-7 |
Information and Communication Technology Services |
ICT failure can cause widespread disruption across gaming, hotel, payment, communications, security, and corporate functions. |
Data centres, networks, cloud and technology providers, applications, cybersecurity, power |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-8 |
Cybersecurity and Information Protection |
A cyber incident may disrupt critical systems, compromise sensitive information, affect customers and employees, and create regulatory and reputational consequences. |
Security operations, ICT infrastructure, identity management, monitoring tools, external specialists |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-9 |
Property, Facilities and Engineering Operations |
Failure of essential building systems may make gaming, hotel, retail, entertainment, and convention facilities unsafe or unavailable. |
Engineering teams, building management systems, spare parts, contractors, utilities |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-10 |
Utilities and Essential Building Services Management |
Loss of electricity, water, cooling, ventilation, or other essential services may force partial or complete closure of resort facilities. |
Utility providers, generators, fuel, engineering teams, and critical equipment |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-11 |
Food and Beverage Operations |
Significant disruption may affect guest services, hotel operations, major events, food safety, and customer experience. |
Food suppliers, kitchens, refrigeration, employees, water, power, logistics |
High |
|
CBF-12 |
Convention, Meeting and Exhibition Operations |
Disruption may affect major events, contractual commitments, business customers, visitors, and Macao's tourism and convention activities. |
Event facilities, ICT, catering, security, employees, suppliers, transportation |
High |
|
CBF-13 |
Entertainment and Venue Operations |
Disruption may lead to event cancellations, safety concerns, financial losses, refunds, and reputational impact. |
Venues, performers, ticketing systems, security, technical systems, contractors |
High |
|
CBF-14 |
Retail and Tenant Operations Support |
Prolonged disruption may affect retail tenants, visitors, rental arrangements, and the overall integrated resort experience. |
Property facilities, tenant communications, security, utilities, ICT |
Medium to High |
|
CBF-15 |
Reservations, Customer Service and Guest Management |
Failure may prevent customers from making or managing bookings and reduce SCL's ability to communicate with and support affected guests. |
Reservation systems, customer databases, contact channels, ICT, employees |
High |
|
CBF-16 |
Payment and Financial Transaction Processing |
Disruption may prevent customer payments, refunds, supplier payments, and revenue collection across resort operations. |
Banks, payment gateways, point-of-sale systems, networks, finance teams |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-17 |
Supply Chain, Procurement and Vendor Management |
Disruption may cause shortages of food, operational supplies, equipment, spare parts, and specialist services required for resort operations. |
Suppliers, logistics providers, procurement systems, warehouses, transportation |
High |
|
CBF-18 |
Human Resources and Workforce Deployment |
SCL requires sufficiently trained employees to operate large and complex resort facilities. Workforce disruption may restrict the continuation or recovery of critical services. |
HR systems, employee records, communications, transport, accommodation, department managers |
High |
|
CBF-19 |
Employee Health, Safety and Welfare |
Failure to protect employees may affect workforce availability, regulatory compliance, employee confidence, and operational recovery. |
Occupational safety teams, medical support, HR, communications, facilities |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-20 |
Crisis Management and Emergency Coordination |
Ineffective crisis coordination may delay decisions, escalation, resource deployment, stakeholder communication, and business recovery. |
Crisis Management Team, command facilities, communications, situational information, senior management |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-21 |
Business Continuity and Operational Recovery Management |
Failure to coordinate continuity and recovery may prolong disruption and result in inconsistent recovery priorities across SC's properties and functions. |
BCM plans, recovery teams, BIA information, crisis management, ICT recovery, suppliers |
Immediate / Critical |
|
CBF-22 |
Corporate and Crisis Communication |
Delayed or inaccurate communication may create confusion among guests, employees, regulators, business partners, media, and other stakeholders. |
Communication teams, approved communication channels, senior management, and crisis information |
High |
|
CBF-23 |
Legal, Compliance and Regulatory Reporting |
Disruption may result in missed regulatory obligations, delayed reporting, legal exposure, and inadequate management of contractual requirements. |
Legal and compliance teams, records, regulatory systems, and senior management |
High |
|
CBF-24 |
Finance, Accounting and Financial Control |
Prolonged disruption may affect financial reporting, liquidity management, payments, financial controls, and management decision-making. |
Financial systems, banking services, ICT, finance employees, financial records |
High |
|
CBF-25 |
Executive Leadership and Corporate Governance |
Major disruptions require timely strategic decisions, risk acceptance, resource prioritisation, and engagement with key stakeholders. |
Board and senior management, crisis information, communication systems, governance processes |
Immediate / Critical |
BCM Interpretation of the Critical Business Functions
The CBFs identified above reflect the interconnected nature of SCL's integrated resort operating model.
Gaming and hotel operations cannot be considered independently from ICT, cybersecurity, facilities, utilities, security, cash management, workforce availability, and regulatory compliance.
A disruption affecting a single enabling function may therefore have cascading consequences across several properties and customer-facing services.
For example, an ICT outage could simultaneously affect gaming systems, hotel reservations, payment processing, customer management, and corporate communications.
Similarly, a major utility failure may affect casino floors, hotel rooms, food and beverage facilities, retail areas, entertainment venues, and convention facilities. This interdependency means that SCL's BCM programme should evaluate not only the direct impact of disruption to each CBF but also the potential for disruption to propagate across other functions.
The catalogue should therefore be used as the starting point for SC's Business Impact Analysis.
Each CBF should be decomposed into its supporting processes or Sub-Critical Business Functions (Sub-CBFs).
SC can then determine the impact of disruption over time, establish recovery priorities, identify critical resources and dependencies, and define appropriate continuity and recovery strategies.
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Identifying Critical Business Functions provides SCL with a structured foundation for prioritising its BCM activities.
The 25 CBFs presented in this chapter provide a practical, initial overview of the operational, customer-facing, regulatory, technological, safety, and corporate capabilities required to sustain SCL's integrated resort operations.
They are informed by SCL's publicly described multi-use integrated resort and casino operating environment, but should be validated internally through consultation with business owners and a formal BIA.
By confirming these functions, analysing their dependencies, and establishing clear recovery priorities, SCL can focus continuity resources on the areas where disruption would have the greatest consequences.
The next stage of BCM implementation should use this CBF catalogue to conduct detailed risk and business impact assessments and develop practical recovery strategies that support the continued resilience of Sands China Ltd.
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