Las Vegas Business Press : GUEST OPINION: Casinos facing tough technology questions

GUEST OPINION: Casinos facing tough technology questions

By Mike Marriott, Special to the Business Press

In some businesses, too much technology can become a problem.

With dozens of separate information technology systems not communicating with one another, many Las Vegas casinos are in need of consolidating various business applications into one common database.

Although casinos may choose good software products in their purchasing decisions, it's important to be able to link the different systems together. Casinos often focus on what a particular application can do for their business and many times don't realize the impact the program can have if it can't communicate with the casino's existing systems.

As technology progresses, casino executives find that new products address the need for information containment. In the highly competitive gaming industry, casinos continually search for ways to manage more data in the most cost-effective manner possible. As a result, gaming companies are subject to installing several data management products to process transactions and track information.

Large casinos often rely on a multitude of independent systems for various technology functions, such as separate tracking systems for slot machines, keno games, race and sports book wagers and dealer to table player ratios. Cooperative software systems can be adapted to work together and exchange information between programs. This, in turn, would save the casino money and allow it to be more efficient in dealing with customers.

In addition, top management now faces increased pressure for accurate accounting practices. Since recent accounting scandals and stock market fiascos have demanded more scrutiny on accurate accounting records, casino executives rely heavily upon software systems to provide detailed reports and meet the audit and accounting requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Many of the systems used in today's larger casinos serve as large information databases, storing huge amounts of specific information used for a single purpose. For the most part, information from each individual system does not mix with information from systems installed to track other types of data.

Like in all businesses, it's important to strategize and link your goals together. If a casino's objective, for instance, is to increase its customer base, then it would be prudent to monitor a customer's spending and gambling habits. This could be done through technology and established databases, which allow for the tracking of a customer's actions within the casino.

The technology, however, needs to have a common approach within all departments of the casino in order to accurately monitor the customers and keep track of valuable information relating to them. In other words, the systems need to "communicate" with one another to complete its duties to its full capacity. Without integration, casinos could lose valuable information and create inconveniences for customers.

Mike Marriott is executive vice president of Las Vegas-based IT Strategies International Corp.

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