Casino Enterprise Management

I know that between meetings, vendor visits, and company-directed agendas, we sometimes neglect some of the most fundamental things.

This includes employee time and general floor time. But, have you thought about handing out an occasional, or even bi-monthly, inter-department fact sheet?

Inter-departmental fact sheets are a great tool to announce what’s new in slots on your floor, or what products and events are coming to your property. After all, your property really takes a public relations hit when your own slot employees find out what is on your slot floor only after they are rotated.

Company Fact Sheets
Slot employees receive many questions from patrons in the course of their shift. As you know, the manners in which they respond, as well as the depths of their answers, reflect directly on your property.

Most resort properties disseminate a fact sheet once a week published by the human resources, training department, or the public relations department, which outlines upcoming events. This update generally includes such items as shows, conventions and locations, and special promotions.

Usually it is a one page document—call it a newsletter if you wish—but basically it is an employee fact sheet, and they are great tools.

As a director in slot and marketing operations, I used this tool, as well as a couple of other methods, for direct employee communication.

You can format your fact sheet any way you like; the important thing is to complete one. I can tell you that putting together a fact sheet like the one above works, and employees appreciate it, because it is never a good idea to leave all communication to human resources.

Turning Communication On
Communication to employees should be consistent and on-going. Be as visible a leader and communicator as possible. Shift change is a great time to not only communicate topical slot information to employees, but it’s the best time to look your employees in the eye. What better motivator than seeing you taking time out to speak to them—even if there isn’t news to announce?

An occasional verbal pat on the back from the director or vice president is worth a great deal. The shift change period is a great place to do this, because you not only see who your employees are, but more importantly, they see you.

With every new procedure, your managers and supervisors train and spend time with each employee. For example, when we first introduced ticketing at our property it was a gradual process. But the communication about the process was always “on.” Helping us complete the process was that we worked through employee meetings and around-the-clock shift changes.

This scenario proves that the daily shift change is the most important communication platform you have. It is important to make the effort.

Don’t Forget to Say “Hi”
Remember, your employees are also the customer trainers.
We continually have new technological features to slots, table play, and electronic kiosks. Be consistent with your employee communications. Your goals as a leader of your department will be more easily accomplished when you are directly involved.
An occasional verbal pat on the back from the director or vice president is worth a great deal.

While I was preparing to write this article, I made it a point to walk some slot floors with key executives from Atlantic City. Slot executive A, a vice president at a large, very popular property in Atlantic City, walked the slot floor with me while I observed the executive’s actions. The vice president recognized every employee, and was able to call them by their first names. The executive was not cheating by reading name tags. I watched for this. More than once, he said their name from across an area. The executive knew each employee and stressed to me how important it was to acknowledge them.

Later, I walked the floor with slot executive B, who was vice president at a smaller property. I must say that I was impressed because this vice president also acknowledged many employees by name. And if he encountered someone from another department he didn’t know, he still made sure to say hello.

I want to say that the above two examples are the normal practice. My advice is that if you do not fit into one of these two examples, you need to get there. And if you do fit, well done to you! It feels good doesn’t it?

Robert Ambrose has been in slot operations for 22 years. Most recently as an Executive Director of Slots and Marketing Operations for a resort property in Atlantic City. He is presently an independent gaming consultant and freelance writer. You can reach him at ramb16@juno.com.