During the recent Casino Marketing & Technology Conference in Temecula, California, Delaware North Marketing Consultant Mark Juliano recalled the time when a customer slipped a $1,000 bill into Juliano’s jacket at the Sands Bay Marina Casino in Singapore.
He eventually turned the money in to the compliance department, and it was good that he did: The entire incident had been captured on camera. Juliano would have been fired if he failed to report the money.
“That was something that I kind of tumbled backwards into a favorable situation. Because it didn’t feel right; I did something about it,” said Juliano, who moderated the session “Beyond the Casino Floor: Ethical Player Engagement.” “And I might not honestly be here talking to all of you. I might have moved back to Montana to become a dental floss tycoon.’”
Juliano’s reference to Frank Zappa’s lyrics aside, Juliano; Francis Nguyen, Grand Sierra Resort’s Director of Player Development; and Pechanga Assistant Director of Asian Marketing Anna Tran deal with ethical considerations daily.
“You have to orient yourself and then make decisions, accordingly, having your ethics being like the guiding principles to your North Star,” Juliano said. “If you do that, you are in a good position to succeed.”
Nguyen said that it’s important for managers especially to remember that they always represent the company by which they are employed.
“I’m not on property right now, but I’m representing the company, and I take a lot of pride in that,” Nguyen said. “That goes a long way.”
Tran noted that she insists that fellow employees remember they are working for a company that are privy to information about its players.
“We have access to a lot of sensitive information,” Tran said. “We run into all kinds of gray areas at all times, and especially when it comes to player comps or player relationships, or when handling a special request. For VIPs it’s not black-and-white; it’s a gray area.
“When training a new host, I would start with the basics. You need to know your company policy and understand the company policy. You got to make sure you walk around knowing your limits.”
KYC – know your customer – principles are important, although they were once a bit haphazard. Before strict KYC procedures were in place, Nguyen knew of a customer who would come into a casino in Northern California and throw around chips “like they were candy.”
When compliance eventually called to ask what the customer was doing, they were told he was a regular player who made the company money. But after a little research, it was revealed the guy was not an ordinary customer.
He was an assassin.
“It was literally blood money,” Nguyen said.
The decision was made to sever ties with the player.
“I was like, I ain’t telling him,” Nguyen said, laughing. “Good luck with that. I had the GM call him. I’ll be on a three-way call. It was a scary situation. … If you guys don’t know what KYC is, know your guests, know your customers,” Nguyen said, “it just protects not only yourself, but it protects the company.
“And, I’m still here.”
