According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, employee dishonesty costs American business in excess of $50 billion annually and rising. Casinos are not immune to this fact and our simple 3 steps are helping casinos go on the offensive against table games collusion:
1. Denial
One of the many things I’ve learned from the book “Management lessons from the Mayo Clinic” is that denial is a coping mechanism that gives you time to adjust to distressing situations — but staying in denial can interfere with your ability to tackle the challenges of casino protection. The first and most important step in tackling collusion is to deal with any denial and acknowledge that collusion is taking place. “Transformational leaders don’t start by denying the world around them. Instead, they describe a future they’d like to create instead.” Seth Godin.
2. Communication
It’s important to create systems that foster communication e.g. We’ve helped casinos implement electronic schedules, break lists and analytical reporting so that managers have access to instantaneous evaluation, allowing them to provide ongoing feedback. Lack of feedback in casinos results in policies and procedures not being strictly followed. Lack of feedback also communicates a lack of interest at the top which sends a message to the troops on the ground. As one surveillance director said, “it’s vital that we communicate, that we are looking out for you and not over you in order to create a culture of trust”. The only way this can be done is by implementing systems and following processes.
3. Measure
If you can’t measure you can’t manage. Whatever systems you have in place, they must empower you to cut through the clutter and get to the important issues that need to be dealt with e.g. We’ve taken the popular Google alerts feature and applied the same feature to casino protection. Instead of wading through standard reports on a daily basis, we’ve built business rules into the report generators that highlight anomalies that need attention. The system then sends alerts in the form of emails that direct you to the evidence. Humans have a limited amount of attention each day and if that attention can be used for the important stuff, we can be more affective in our casino protection. Make sure your measuring tools are cutting through the clutter!
Great biceps require dedication and a disciplined lifestyle. As you focus on these 3 steps this year, I know your dedication will result in a well protected casino and possibly the acknowledgment of the most valuable department in your organization. We look forward to hearing about your great success stories!
