At MGM
In 1998, he moved to the corporate sector, joining MGM as CFO and member of its Board of Directors. In 1999, he became President, and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2007; he became Chairman and CEO in December 2008, his 10th year at the company. Under his tenure, the company embarked upon an extremely successful decade of growth. Murren was the architect of $15 billion of acquisitions including Primadonna Resort & Casino in 1998, Mirage Resorts in 2000, and Mandalay Resort Group in 2005—acquisitions that helped transform MGM into the world's largest gaming company. He was repeatedly honored as the gaming and lodging industry’s top CFO by Institutional Investor magazine.
In 2008-09, Murren led an extensive reorganization of the company, resulting in over $500 million of annual savings; this, together with a $3.8 billion financing effort, kept the company from failure during the early days of the Great Recession in 2008 and 2009. John Mack, Chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley said that "Jim’s background and experience with financial markets, management and operations has enabled him to provide exceptional leadership to MGM during an unprecedented period of turbulence in the economy and capital markets."
During Murren's tenure, MGM joined with Dubai World in the development of the Las Vegas Strip's CityCenter. When CityCenter opened in December 2009, it represented the largest single private development and the largest green project ever undertaken in the nation’s history and America’s number one generator of new jobs during the Great Recession. Senator Harry Reid said, "The Las Vegas community may never be able to express its appreciation adequately for all that Jim has done, but his hard work hasn't gone unnoticed. ... He is a leader of his generation in job creation, green investment and philanthropy." Somer Hollingsworth, President and CEO of the Nevada Development Authority, called CityCenter "the most exciting and impactful project to open for the foreseeable future,”
During 2010, according to Forbes, Murren's total remuneration from MGM was $9.75 million, including $2 million in salary, a $750,000 bonus.
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