Matt Maddox

CEO of Wynn Resorts

Matt Maddox began his career as an investment banker in the mergers and acquisitions department at Bank of America before shifting to corporate finance at Park Place Entertainment, now known as Caesars Entertainment. Next, he became one of the first employees at Wynn Resorts and worked as Treasurer and Vice President of Investor Relations where he was responsible for securing finances to build Wynn Las Vegas. Recognizing the incredible potential for a resort overseas in China, Maddox was among the first of the Wynn executive team to relocate to Macau in 2003 and subsequently acted as the Chief Financial Officer of Wynn Resorts Macau. There, he experienced the SARS epidemic firsthand in 2003, an event which impacted his own response to COVID-19 later on. He continued working for Wynn Resorts in various roles until he was appointed CEO in February 2018 and was based in Las Vegas, NV.

When COVID-19 initially emerged in China in December 2019, Maddox heard from colleagues, some whom he worked alongside during the SARS outbreak, who were terrified of the virus spreading. Considering Maddox was responsible for 15,000 employees in Macau and based on his experience with SARS, he decided to act before the virus began to severely impact the United States. He decided to find an advisor who would educate himself and others on the crisis. Maddox was introduced to Dr. Rebecca Katz and he brought her on as a Wynn Resorts consultant to help guide the company’s pandemic response. 

Wynn Resorts closed their hotel doors in the U.S. on March 17, 2020 before any state government mandates and continued to pay their employees equivalent wages including the amount of tips they would have made. Maddox released a video with Dr. Katz explaining Wynn Resort’s decision-making process to shut down and it went viral within the tourism and hospitality industry. Maddox led Wynn Resorts in a variety of initiatives such as the Last Vegas resort acting as a vaccination site. Wynn Resorts also released a cutting-edge pandemic playbook which garnered attention from the NBA, Disney, and government sector. After leading Wynn Resorts during the pandemic, Maddox will be stepping down from his position as CEO in January 2022.

Learn more about Matt Maddox’s work: