As consumer behaviour trends continue to grow and evolve, how can the gaming industry do more to address a gender imbalance within the sector?

What is it?

Applico’s ‘The 21st Century Casino’ delves into how women in leadership will change the gaming industry and why there is still some way to go.

Who is it?

Jan Jones Blackhurst, Chief Executive at International Gaming Institute/Board Member at Caesars Entertainment

What is being said?

When asked about the level of progress within the industry of women in leadership, Blackhurst said: “It’s not really there yet, if I’m going to be entirely honest. Until you see even a proportion of men and women, and women of colour, in c-suites across the gaming industry, you haven’t made progress.

“What I find very interesting about that is in all the years I’ve dealt with diversity, inclusion and promoting gender balance, everyone says ‘we don’t want to impact the meritocracy’. If you look at data from McKinsey and from Bloomberg or from Morgan Stanley, all of it clearly indicates that high performing teams all come from diverse management teams.

“If you’re not diverse, you’re not a meritocracy. I think we need to sort of flip how we’re looking at this.”

She continued: “The other thing I’ve always found interesting is if you look at a slot customer, about 80% of slot customers are women. If you look at a sports betting customer, a significant percentage – about 43% or 44% – of active sports bettors are women.

So, why do you want men being the major designers of the project where in many aspects the woman is the largest user? I think we’re missing a real opportunity.”

Why should I watch it?

To learn about how the gaming industry is developing and how the gender imbalance can be addressed, supplemented with statistics.

Where can I see more?

Source: Applico YouTube Channel