NEWS
Blackpool casino enlists local college
Bespoke course developed to help ensure
supply of gaming-savvy staff for Coral Island The management of the casino in Europe’s largest family entertainment centre (FEC) is working with a local college to develop the skills needed for careers in a gaming business. The Noble Organisation, which operates Coral Island in the northwestern British coastal resort of Blackpool, has joined forces with Blackpool and The Fylde College, which will train potential employees in all aspects of casino games and customer service as Noble prepares to open its first casino within the complex.
A bespoke academy has been developed by the college to meet the training
requirements of Noble, giving candidates a competitive edge at interview and equipping them with knowledge and skills relevant to their employment in amusements or gaming. The venture is a partnership with Jobcentre Plus, a part of the British
governments Department for Work and Pensions, best known for helping the unemployed find jobs. In this case, howeer, the role of Jobcentre Plus is to select candidates for the course. Noble representatives then have the chance to meet with the group before and during the six-week programme. Specialist courses give participants certificates in fields including health and
safety, first aid at work, and equality and diversity. Noble is also providing funding for each candidate to obtain a personal functional licence, required to work in any casino. All who complete the courses are guaranteed an interview with Noble, and CV tips and interview techniques are built into the courses. Said Colleen McLaughlin, National Gaming Academy Co-Ordinator at the college: “This is the first time the National Gaming Academy has supported the opening of a brand- new casino, which is essentially what we were set up to do, so it’s a significant development. The college has operated sector-based work academies before, both in the gaming industry and for the wider market, and they’ve proved a successful way of restoring a sense of pride to unemployed people and providing job-ready staff to organisations.” Noble’s Managing Director Tony Gibbons added: “Blackpool already offers a number of licensed casinos and we need to make sure our staff will be the best. The college will help us fulfil this objective. All the vacancies on the course will be offered to local people and the vast majority of our team will be Blackpool residents, which we believe is critical.”
GSA updates S2S
Standard helps integrate multichannel player data The Gaming Standards Association (GSA) has upgraded its System to System (S2S) standard, and describes the new S2S version 1.6 Message Protocol as “a giant leap forward”.
This outlines the way in which software should be downloaded to site
controllers and then installed on gaming machines, using the GSA’s Game to System (G2S) standard.
The new version of S2S also features improvements to the specifications for player tracking, particularly aimed at helping operators and suppliers that are seeking to integrate data on player activity across multiple channels, both land- based and online. Said GSA Protocol Director Ethan Tower: “S2S continues to evolve. New functionality is being added and existing functionality is being updated to meet the needs of the industry to accommodate and anticipate player demand.”
8 MAY 2012
SUZO-HAPP In Suzo-Happ Group’s European sales team, Harald Wagemaker has been promoted to Sales Director; his previous experience includes a spell with Epson. Lou Rudolph also joins the team as Regional Sales Manager with responsibility for OEM sales to Italy, Greece and Eastern Europe; he was previously a Sales Manager and interim Sales Director in Europe for JCM, and has worked with other firms including Merit Industries and Global VR.
TCSJOHNHUXLEY Jean-Paul Symeonidis is the new Business Development Manager – Canada for TCSJohnHuxley, based in Montreal.
GAMINGPEOPLE
888 The French Canadian martial arts champion Georges St-Pierre has signed a global endorsement contract with 888.
CANTOR GAMING Jeff Burge has joined Cantor Gaming as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer, replacing Coreen Sawdon. He arrives from The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, where he has been Chief Financial Officer since 2009, and previously held positions with Las Vegas Sands and Ameristar.
CLARION EVENTS Yeemay Huang has left Clarion Events to join OpenBet.
FUTURELOGIC FutureLogic has appointed Steve Zbin as Customer Experience Manager, a new position.
GLI Gaming Laboratories International’s European arm GLI Europe has appointed David Jimenez as Technical Manager of its GLI España lab in Barcelona. Most recently he was Product Manager of the Gaming Department at Applus; previous employers include Tyco Electronics.
LAS VEGAS SANDS Chris Cahill, a two-decade veteran of Fairmont Raffles International where he served for a time as President and Chief Operating Officer, has moved to Las Vegas Sands as Executive Vice President of Global Operations. In the newly-created role he will oversee property operations in Las Vegas, Pennsylvania, Macau and Singapore.
NEVADA GAMING CONTROL BOARD Nevada’s Gaming Control Board has appointed three division chiefs to replace retiring or resigning staffers. Jim Barbee will now lead the Technology Division, Shirley Springer will lead the Audit Division and Brian Duffrin will head the Administration Division. “The addition of these three very capable managers to new leadership roles comes when we are closely examining new policies addressing advanced gaming technologies and the implementation of regulation of online gaming,” said Gaming Control Board Chairman Mark Lipparelli.
NEWAVE Karen Slak is the new Customer Advocate at Newave. In this new role, her principal responsibility will be to liaise with casino clients to ensure their systems are performing as desired. She most recently worked as Cage Operations Manager for AVI Casino and Resort in Laughlin, Nevada; previous roles include General Manager at Doc Holliday Casino in Central City, Colorado, and Director of Slots at Isle of Capri in the same state’s Blackhawk. Before that, she was Slot Manager for Players Casino (now Harrah’s) in Metropolis, Illinois; Cage/Credit Manager for Argosy Empress Casino in Joliet, Illinois; Cage Manager at Harrah’s Casino in Metropolis, Illinois; and Cage Manager/Casino Manager for Glory Hole Casino in Central City, Colorado. She has also worked in training and develoment for companies including Harrah’s Entertainment.
SPIELO INTERNATIONAL Lottomatica subsidiary Spielo International has named two new people to its Asian team. Lai Fatt Chiang becomes General Manager of Casino Systems for Asia Pacific, based in Malaysia; he was previously with RGB International and with Spielo’s games division. Meanwhile, Maria Garcia becomes Director of Sales for Asia (Casino Games), based in Macau. She was most recently with Asia Pioneer Entertainment
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