Tracking all sorts of casino data isn’t just about understanding customers’ habits to improve marketing. It’s also a way to protect casino visitors and prevent loss.
Being able to analyze the where-when-who-and-how of seemingly daily occurrences – from lost-and-found to a slip-and-fall, from a drunken customer to an assault or theft – can help casino security head off problems.
Which is where the Omnigo iTrak system come in.
“It ties all those data points together,” says Joseph Osterloh, executive director of the Jamul Tribal Gaming Commission, who previously was director of surveillance at Viejas Casino in San Diego, CA. He used iTrak there, as does Hollywood Casino San Diego, which the Jamul commission oversees.
The iTrak system functions like a large spreadsheet that allows easy input of facts, descriptions and other documentation on any type of occurrence that casinos want to track, from a lost slot machine ticket to a violent attack.
Tribal gaming compacts and state laws specify a broad range of activities that casinos must report. The iTrak system makes compiling such reports a breeze. Omnigo sales representative Winnie Sham said a New York casino surveillance department that had been devoting two days a month to assembling its required monthly report cut that time to 10 minutes after installing iTrak.
Omnigo, which is based in St. Louis and has a satellite office in Ontario, Canada, is used in casinos in 20 countries, including 40 to 50 percent of the casinos in the United States, she said. The company also serves health care, law enforcement and educational operations.
The program is entirely customizable, which allows each casino to design and label various information fields. Some things, such as a lost-and-found report, become part of a daily log.
More severe actions, such as crimes or potential lawsuits, become part of a specialized incident report. Security and surveillance officials can collect and track reports in real time, and if a minor occurrence develops into something more serious, the history is still available.
The software allows users to identify associates of those involved in incidents, including information such as gang emblems and tattoos. And because everything is contained in a database, information is easily searchable on any category.
Osterloh said an added module that tracks vehicle licenses has helped in handling a spate of thefts from cars at one of his casinos.
Companies or tribes with multiple casinos can tie all their data together. Sham said the user owns all the information and is the only one able to access the data.
Osterloh said the analytical capabilities of iTrak can help security departments decide how to use their resources.
“We focus our efforts on where we have the most problems,” he said.
“First and foremost, our goal is to protect our customers and employees. It’s about holding people accountable. This system allows you to track and respond in an appropriate manner.”
