VEGAS INC Magazine - Latest Las Vegas business news, features and commentaries about gaming, tourism, real estate and more
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/105502
hole in e Ross mption e-based iability fy for license 100,000 meant ss than owling ose the islative e – and e-based er it is nse fee. w they state," at." ndment medical e failed y obtain ants to d create sed and e would ties this VEGAS INC Recruiters look for analytical thinking, critical eye CAESARs, From page 11 "The cool thing about this is you can be exposed to companies for a whole weekend, meet and talk with recruiters and executives, and play a little poker," said Ashish Gupta, 29, a student at USC's Marshall School of Business. Caesars has found that the MBAs who best understand poker are usually the ones best suited to run casino-hotels. "Look at the skills required of quality poker players," said Paul King, corporate director of talent and recruiting for Caesars, which runs the World Series of Poker. "They are the same types of qualities we look for in candidates. They are analytical in nature, strategic in approach to the game and savvy in the way they play. What we're looking for is a critical eye and analytical thinking skills." Of the hundreds who play in the threeday tournament, only a handful win positions with the company. Last year, 12 candidates from the poker weekend received invitations to work in Caesars' President's Associate Program. The two-year apprenticeship offers associates a chance to interact with senior executives and participate in business decisions. It's the first step toward being offered a permanent position managing table games, slot machines, hotels, restaurants and marketing or finance departments. Four of the 12 president's associates hired at last year's MBA poker event landed full-time jobs. The idea came out of a poker game among students at the University of Chicago's business school. The friends began playing, then invited students from other business schools to play. King's predecessor, Brad Warga, learned about the game and brought the concept to Caesars. "When it first started, it was much more a brand-building event, not as focused on recruiting," King said. "In the last few years, we've changed that. We are interviewing people, and some are leaving with offers. We're not a boring company, and what better way to expose people to the fun culture of our company and Las Vegas than a poker tournament? "It's now a pretty well-known event across the MBA universe. It has really become a huge part of our recruiting brand in this market." It also makes Caesars stand out from crowds of companies, including its competitors on the Strip. Caesars says it is the only casino company that markets itself this way. "Every time I go out and talk about this, they say this is the most creative event | 28 JANUARY 2013 20130128_VI01_F.indd 17 | photos by leila navidi ALL IN: Rajashree Todmal, a student at Carnegie Mellon University, plays poker Jan. 19 during the MBA Poker Championship and Recruitment Weekend at Planet Hollywood. Caesars Entertainment uses the event to find candidates for executive positions. Below: Roderick Head, a graduate of the University of Memphis, concentrates on a game. they've seen," King said. The company imposes only one restriction: Poker players must be in the process of earning an MBA or have recently graduated to qualify for the tournament, which draws people looking to enter the workforce, as well as those who want to change careers. "You'd be surprised how many people we get out of consulting companies like McKinsey or Bain," King said. The weekend also has spawned satellite tournaments. Students at the Carnegie Mellon Tepper School of Business, for instance, hold their own tournament, with the winner receiving a free trip to the Caesars recruitment weekend. It isn't all fun and games, though. Besides playing poker, candidates meet with Caesars executives, attend company presentations and participate in interviews. On the third day, invitations are handed out to those who met the company's expectations. "We get people who just want to come and play, hang out with their grad school buddies and enjoy Vegas," King said. "But we also get a good majority who ... are very actively looking for work." It's easy to spot the job seekers, King said. "The people who are just here for fun show up in shorts and flip-flops," he said. "Those wanting jobs bring suits." Caesars doesn't limit potential hires by school, but it does focus on a few key campuses. There's Harvard, of course — the alma mater of Caesars chief Gary Loveman — as well as MIT, Duke, Vanderbilt, the University of Chicago, Northwestern, UCLA and USC. John Payne, Caesars' president of enterprise shared services, is the highest ranking executive to have come out of the program. Other alumni, according to their LinkedIn profiles, include Matthew Heiskel, assistant general manager of Bally's, Atlantic City (2007); Jacqueline Beato, director of investor relations (2008); Neera Chanani, head of Caesars' South Asia division (2010); and Chirag Tasker, regional vice president of marketing in Philadelphia (2010). Caesars also opens the poker tournament to recruiters from other companies. This year, game manufacturer IGT signed on. "We make it productive, and at the same time, it's really, really fun," King said. "It's unique to Las Vegas and our company." 17 1/24/13 2:26:33 PM