2004 GREAT WOMEN OF GAMING
Proven leader
Kathleen McLaughlin-Harris
Vice President Slot Development—Corporate
Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.
Kathleen McLaughlin-Harris is one fearless
female. She has followed the same philosophy
her entire life: take the risk, face the challenge
and pursue all good opportunities. That mindset
is how she landed her position with
Harrah's Entertainment. Never one to shy
away from taking responsibility, she says, "I
have always sought jobs with risks. I like
being uncomfortable in the challenge. If not,
I'm bored. I like the total accountability for
any failure."
As the Vice President of Game
Development, Slot Operations since 1999,
McLaughlin-Harris oversees key slot product
selection, purchase, merchandising and new
products for the Harrah's brand. She says,
"My job involves forward thinking, and has
been very entrepreneurial. Early in my career,
it started as a job, but now I'm consumed and
incredibly passionate about slots and electronic
gaming machines. I understand sales, manufacturing
and service since I have worked in
every area during my career. We are very analytical
and measurement-driven, and often
know more about the end-user customer than
the manufacturers."
McLaughlin-Harris says she works with
many manufacturers—some better and more
cooperative in their thinking than others—and
must deliver a quality product without getting
a defensive reaction to her suggestions.
"There are only a handful of people in the
world who truly should be game designers.
They are artistic and can create a wonderful
product for us because Harrah's has spent the
time to develop and articulate a specification
for the type of player experience we want to
provide," says McLaughlin-Harris.
She knows something about creativity and
innovation, having designed many of her own
jobs during the past 20 years. Born in
Pennsylvania, but raised in suburban Chicago,
McLaughlin-Harris migrated west more than
once to take full advantage of career opportunities
that came her way, and also to seize the
chance to create some positions of her own.
Following a two-year term as a biology
teacher in the early 1980s, McLaughlin-Harris
traveled west to sing professionally at
Disneyland and in venues throughout southern
California. She continued to be contracted
to sing in larger rooms in many casinos in Las
Vegas.
After several years, McLaughlin-Harris felt
that her people skills and understanding of
customers' interests qualified her for something
new. She approached the marketing
department at the Las Vegas Hilton, and
joined a pilot program to develop a player
tracking system. Though it was an entry-level
position, McLaughlin-Harris soon learned the
mechanical workings and reward functions of
the machines and marketing them to players.
The next seven years was a whirlwind of
jobs in the slot departments of both landbased
and riverboat casinos in Las Vegas and
Illinois. McLaughlin-Harris created Mirage
Resorts' Slot Training Department in 1990. "It
was supposed to be a probationary six-month
job to help Mirage employees address complex
slot operations problems while developing
employee action training plans to achieve sustainable
results. I stayed through 1992," she
says.
McLaughlin-Harris spent the first half of
the 1990s back in Illinois, working for the
Hollywood Casino and Silver Eagle Casino
Cruise companies, again perfecting her skills
in slot operations and marketing.
When McLaughlin-Harris left operations in
1996 to learn the true mechanics of the slotmanufacturing
end of the industry, she
remained in the Chicago area. She joined
WMS Gaming, Inc. as corporate director of
marketing. Her job involved marketing, sales
and distribution, packaging and influencing
game development and design strategies.
McLaughlin-Harris says that manufacturing
gave her an interesting perspective, solidifying
her conclusions about successful slot
operations. She says, "While innovation in
technology is important, one thing remains
vital—bells and whistles matter, but the math
is the key. Players want a fair gamble for their
seat time. They vote with their dollars, choosing
either shorter or longer experiences. I have
learned that customers want to win in many
ways."
When McLaughlin-Harris joined the
Harrah's team in Las Vegas in 1999, she took
on the role of corporate liaison between the
properties, marketing and the slot manufacturers.
She states that the packaging of slot
machines is changing. "I work with manufacturers
to identify a project. I either bring them
a concept or work with them at various stages
of the game's development. It depends on
when we join the relationship. We look to
meet the goals and objectives of the players
when we partner or launch a product in a creative,
collaborative way," says McLaughlin-
Harris.
Over the years, McLaughlin-Harris has
been an integral part of the design and distribution
of numerous famous, successful products
such as The Price is Right®, Hollywood
Squares® and The Game of Life® for Harrah's
and MONOPOLY® and Reel Em' In® for WMS
Gaming.
In 2004, there have been 10 launches with
various manufacturers, either on a companywide
saturation or in targeted markets. "If we
do a national launch, a manufacturer must be
willing to hold the game until it is approved in
all jurisdictions. We have a lot of intelligence
on the manufacturers, and can hand pick
them, based on suitability for each project,"
McLaughlin-Harris says.
McLaughlin-Harris loves her work and
feels that Harrah's is a great place for women
to work. "As a company, Harrah's has become
much more open to women in senior management.
As people rise in the organization, it
is more competitive, whether it is a man or a
woman vying for the same position. I believe
my career path has been successful because I
have been in the right place at the right time
for certain career decisions. I have been able
to pick and choose certain roles," she says.
Copyright 2011, Great Women of Gaming. All rights reserved.
