Inheriting the Future
Observations on the evolving role of middle management within the Australian gaming industry; a paper co-authored by Michael Ferris and Andrew MacDonald.
By Andrew MacDonald, Senior Executive Casino Operations
and Michael Ferris
Adelaide Casino, 1995
Introduction and Terminology | Pit Boss – Caretaker or Policeman | Mental Models | “If It Isn’t Broken – Don’t Fix It” | Pioneers Versus Settlers | The Challenge of Change | Bridging the Gulf between the Theoretical and the Practical | From Personal Realm to Professional Sphere | Means of Selection for Promotion | The Formation of Particular Management Structures | The Impact of Promotion upon Candidates Themselves | The Criteria for Selection | Unified Professional Ethic | Pit Boss Job Description | Code Of Ethics (Noblesse Oblige) | The Company Mission Statement | Empowerment of Staff | Implementing Change | The Human Consequences of Change | Walking Backwards into the Future | Bibliography |
The term professional is often bandied about within the casino industry. However, what we each mean by professional remains intangible and impossible to pin down. The term professional may mean all things to all people. Such a vague yardstick makes it difficult to measure our performance or the performance of others. We classify ourselves as professionals and in so far as we get paid for our efforts, we are certainly not amateurs. Yet, in the higher sense of the word as used by the legal or medical communities, a profession implies a group acting voluntarily in accordance with consistent guidelines towards some common good. Without being pretentious or seeking to raise our occupation to these levels, it would nevertheless be a huge step forward if we could reach a collective agreement on what we actually aspire to be. If we could carve out a unified professional ethic with some broad areas of consensus, we could then orientate ourselves and align our efforts in a far more effective manner. Drawing upon the collective input of our middle managers, the Casino has devised a three-tiered approach:
-a Job Description (what a manager should do);
– a Code of Ethics (how a Supervisor should carry out these duties in terms of spirit); and
– a Mission Statement (the company environment within which duties are carried out).
To use a musical analogy, the job description is the words, the code of ethics is the tune, and the mission statement is the background accompaniment.
Again, I wish to reiterate that my intention is not to impose this vision on others. The hope is that these ideas may act as a catalyst for future discussion within the industry. It is proffered as a skeleton of ideas to be fleshed out by those in the industry who share the desire to put the management role on a more productive basis. It is not what a vision is but what a vision does that is important – creating a dynamic tension which pulls us towards a more effective future work force and work place.
