Casino security officer

With nine employees, the SIC leverages monitoring services and the diverse experiences of their staff to provide real-time intelligence to relevant stakeholders. Some SIC employees bring military experience to their roles, while others come from law enforcement, emergency management or criminal justice, which helps widen the breadth of intelligence uncovered by the team.

Eric Golebiewski, Vice President of Corporate Security at Caesars Entertainment, believes that a wide range of experience is critical to building a successful security team. “A lot of our philosophy is based around diversity of thought,” he says. “When we bring in security, we want somebody who knows private security; somebody who knows law enforcement, whether it be federal, local or state; and somebody with military expertise because they each bring a different skill set that is invaluable to their position. Then they learn from each other based on the strengths that they bring to the table.”

Forging External Security Partnerships

Learning opportunities don’t begin and end within the Caesars security team. Gleason leads an intelligence sharing group involving other properties on the Strip, providing another avenue for real-time information sharing and communication.

The group has helped local law enforcement connect smaller threats to the larger picture. Due to the unique location of the Strip, nine Caesars properties and their competitors are within walking distance of one another. While convenient for hotel and casino guests, the proximity of these entertainment venues also entails a higher risk level. Gleason’s intelligence sharing group helps streamline communication between all properties on the Las Vegas Strip and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) to mitigate the risks of repeat offenders.

By coordinating with other Las Vegas properties, the team at Caesars Palace can stay up to date on security threats. According to Golebiewski, “We look at security as less of a competitive advantage, and more of a community of interest. If there’s a bomb that goes off at a strip property, it’s going to shut the whole city down and be detrimental to everybody’s business. Everybody’s working collaboratively to make sure that nothing happens in our community.”

Communicating in Times of Crisis

On top of their external collaboration, Caesars has teams dedicated to deterring and responding to larger incidents. The Caesars K9 explosives detection team helps both in security and loss prevention efforts.

“Being a major casino operation, we do get bomb threats on occasions, and our dogs are on property, ready to check out the threat,” Martinez says. “If there are packages or bags that have been left unattended, our dogs go there within minutes, sniff and determine it’s safe. That way, there aren’t evacuations. There’s no panic — we do this all while our guests are enjoying themselves.”