In the old days of the cat walk, casinos used to hire the fox to watch the hen house. Any truth of that today?

If you look closely, I think you might still find some old time "foxes" wearing the guise of surveillance director even today. In the modern era though, with all the HR screenings and background checks, I don't think too many repentant sinners would make the cut. Nowadays, all the smart foxes are in consultancy.

"They're all in consultancy"....lol

Brian, let's say that I've completely lost my mind and have an interest in becoming a surveillance operator.  How does one get started if so inclined?

Normally, rookie surveillance operators are recruited from in-house floor staff although I know of occasions where outsiders have been hired into both existing and start up operations. Training is also normally carried out on site, however some external schools exist for the purpose of training surveillance staff with the trainees usually coming from a police or armed forces background.

It seems to me, one should have dealing and floor experience. Agree Brian?

The people who run the external surveillance training schools would disagree but personally, I can't see how anyone could make a good surveillance operator without having prior dealing experience. Obviously, a large part of the surveillance operator's job is monitoring the action on the tables. Unlike floor staff, however, the surveillance operator "arrives" at a table without the advantage of having all the information that the outgoing games supervisor passes to his incoming counterpart. The operator must reason the "why" of a dealer's actions in addition to the "what". The ability to know what a dealer should be doing under any given situation is a product of years of "being there" and "doing that". It's something similar to the way games supervisors can supervise four tables using only occasional glances and a trained ear. Think about it, if you were the owner of a casino that offered craps, would you want a recent craps school graduate as your "last line of defense"? Now parlay that situation to cover all games, slot, cage, count and other money areas. Thirty days of total casino training, from the street to the monitor screen, isn't going to cut it. An operator's credibility can also play an important role in surveillance/floor relations.

So you don't recommend hiring ex-cops as surveillance operators?

Let's put it this way Scott, when the floor starts hiring ex-cops as boxmen, direct from craps school, I'll start recommending them for surveillance.

Isn't it difficult finding people who have work experience in all casino areas?

That animal probably doesn't exist. For the surveillance operator, having actual work experience in the non-games casino areas is not as crucial as having experience on the tables. All of the other casino areas operate under strict internal controls with every transaction being documented. A large part of the surveillance operator's training is dedicated to familiarization with the laws, internal and accounting controls and procedures that govern these areas. Although subject to similar controls, the tables present the unique situation of undocumented cash/chip transactions making this area the most vulnerable. The more other-area experience a surveillance trainee brings to the operation the better, but game knowledge is by far the most vital.

Which qualities would you look for in a candidate for a surveillance position?

Inquisitiveness, honesty, loyalty, reliability, objectivity, tenacity, self-motivation.

Tell me this, how come you placed inquisitiveness before honesty?

In my experience, most people in the casino business either are, or can be made to be, honest at work. If a surveillance worker lacks inquisitiveness however, he is as good as useless to the operation and the very act of accepting his weekly paycheck is a dishonest act.

Apart from the usual qualifications necessary to succeed as a casino dealer and TGS, what additional attributes must a surveillance operator possess?

When casino workers leave the floor and enter a surveillance operation they are often surprised by the level of autonomy that they are granted in deciding how best to handle a particular task or situation. After years of dealing on a scheduled table and according to a procedure manual, they now often find themselves at liberty to choose what they will do and how they will do it. Their level of personal responsibility increases sharply and this can present problems for those who are not prepared to think for themselves. The following is excerpted from a job advertisement that I use.

The successful surveillance operator will:

1. Be a self-motivated person who is able to work in a high-pressure environment with minimum supervision.

2. Possess excellent communication skills, both oral & written.

3. Be able to organize and prioritize tasks as they present themselves

4. Be able to interpret the limits of a law and advise decision-makers accordingly.

5. Possess the ability to make decisions quickly.

Let me ask you this. I wrote in my introduction about how you guys are called upon to perform game pace audits, which track the speed of each dealer in the casino to ensure they are performing up to par. Now I know you can't possibly keep track of each dealer. How is this done. I know why it's done, but do you randomly pick just anyone?

The game pace audits are a tool that let management know the average level of productivity in a given pit. Tables are selected at random but making sure that each dealer is included in the sample over the study period. Senior management is more interested in the overall productivity figures than those of individual dealers. Individual dealer pace is the responsibility of the supervisor or pit boss. Of course, if in the course of the audits surveillance notices anything untoward, including bad game pacing, that fact will be brought to the attention of the pit boss.

Excellent written communication skills?  That leaves me out.  Bottom line, how much income could I expect as a surveillance operator? 

This probably depends on the attitude an individual casino owner or company holds towards the surveillance operation. As a general rule, an operator's pay scale and benefits should mirror those enjoyed by a floor supervisor. A surveillance room manager may expect to be compensated on par with a pit boss.

You commented earlier that the games area is the most vulnerable area of a casino. Are you saying that surveillance concentrates its energies there?

Table games is the casino area most prone to human error, employee theft, customer theft, collusion and any other way you can think of to lose revenue. For any given roll, spin or hand there are no receipts, documents, computer chips or other physical controls protecting the casino's money. There is only the dealer, the supervisor and surveillance. Obviously, adequate surveillance of the table games area is considered critical to the success of the casino operation, however, that's not to say that the rest goes unwatched. By using creative surveillance techniques, state of the art computerized equipment, the requirement of a strict adherence to procedure by all employees, close liaison with the accounting department and an acquired ability to spot the difference, the surveillance operator can be many places at once without leaving his console.

What do you mean by: "Spot the difference"?

That's basically a reference to the fact that surveillance operators don't concern themselves with what's right, but with what's wrong. Good surveillance people maintain a picture in their minds of what "should be". They are constantly on the look out for anomalies that conflict with that picture; things out of place, abnormal actions, suspicious body language, hands where they shouldn't be, etc. A casino with a tight system of internal controls and procedures, backed by a strong surveillance department, has little to fear with regard to losses by cheating or theft.

And if the system of internal control is not so tight?

Internal controls and procedures are the constant against which every action of every casino employee, guest and visitor is compared. A casino either lacking adequate internal controls or suffering a management that is too elastic in the enforcement of the controls, operates in a very precarious position. Conducting an efficient surveillance operation under those conditions is an extremely difficult task.

I seem to remember surveillance calling down if I made one little error, well, maybe more than once perhaps, it's a wonder they had time deal with the important things.

It's all important to us and goes back to the operator's "should be" picture. If procedures are breached but ignored, soon enough that picture gets hazy and the surveillance operation becomes less effective. For example, one instance of a dealer forgetting to clear his hands may seem trivial but it is reported to the pit boss in order that the norm doesn't become: "Some dealers sometimes don't clear their hands". Most dealers probably don't see why that's a big deal but the dishonest ones do.

That's fine if the surveillance operation is professional. What can a floor employee do if the surveillance guys are abusing their position?  I'm not going to go into detail,  but you know exactly what I'm talking about!

That's the best question yet. Every employee is entitled to fair and equitable treatment. If the incident in question was visible on the casino floor it will be on videotape. Surveillance operators must produce taped backup for every procedural breach report they write. If what's on the tape conflicts with the written report, then it's the operator who has the explaining to do. In the case of a serious breach, however, one of the casino managers has usually viewed taped coverage of the incident before deciding what action to take. For other instances of professional discourtesy or abuse of position on the operator's part, the complainant should immediately document what took place, what was done or said, and report the incident to his superiors at the first possible opportunity. Most surveillance directors won't tolerate unprofessional conduct from their staff. One caveat to that; dogged persistence in questioning floor staff in order to gather all the facts is not considered unprofessional conduct within a surveillance operation.

It seems to me that craps would be the hardest game to cheat. Agree?

Yes, um, you're 100%, absolutely correct on that one, Scott. I often wonder what all those sliders, switchers, late don't bettors, and railbirds, etc. are doing there. Sorry, I couldn't resist that. In reality, you could be forgiven for thinking that with 4-6 seasoned veterans surrounding a craps game cheats wouldn't stand a field bettor's chance, but when the focus goes off the dice and onto the 44 DD's at one end of the table, anything can happen at the other end. Casino cheating, like magic, is all about distraction. However, again like magic, the distraction method is usually exaggerated. So, if a noisy fight breaks out in the casino, Miss Silicon's IQ matches her chest measurement, or the whooping good old boy in the cowboy hat is getting everyone's attention on the blackjack table, start checking those dice after every roll.

I tell my students that a dealer is directly or indirectly (confederate) involved in as many as 30% of all table games cheating activities. I got that figure from a seminar many years ago. Would you agree with that statement?

What, and they haven't caught him yet!!? 

Very funny

Seriously, it's hard to answer that. Percentage figures like those sound good in seminars but they are not based in fact and are impossible to compute. If I had to throw my guess into the ring, I'd say the incidence of employee/customer collusion was much lower. Convincing a dealer to throw away his livelihood, and perhaps his liberty, for a few fast dollars must be no easy thing. What I can state with confidence is that dealers who are not involved in the cheating activity are at least partly to blame for any losses, 100% of the time. The dealer's primary responsibility is to protect his game. Any compromise of the table's float or equipment security, while the table is open, is due to dealer negligence. Although there are some pretty skillful cheats out there, if a dealer follows the dealing procedures and keeps his eyes on the game he can keep losses by cheating to a minimum.

As a percentage of the casino's revenue, what would you say was an acceptable minimum level of losses to cheating and theft?

Zero%

Alright, that was another stupid question.  So I guess I should make this one my last. Let's see, does your job generate much paperwork? I hate paperwork.

Reams of the stuff! After years of constant math class on the floor, the trainee operator is now called upon to dust off his English skills as he writes a report for every non-routine occurrence that passes before his eyes. Writing a concise, accurate and unbiased report that contains all the facts is yet another skill that the good operator will acquire over the years. As these reports may end up as evidence in a court of law it's important that they comprise a truthful account of what actually transpired. Many surveillance operations employ secretaries who help with the external reports but the person who has to write down what he saw is the operator.

Thanks again Brian. I really appreciate your time.  Do you want to let a few dealers and floor supervisors ask a question or two?  I can post inquires on the home page.

Fire away. I'll answer a couple.

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