In 2016, Global Gaming Women (GGW) was established by the American Gaming Association (AGA) as an independent charitable organization to deliver high impact programs and events on a global scale that support, inspire, and influence the development of women in the gaming and lottery industry. Now, after six years, the group has achieved its goal of helping female gaming professionals to learn from one another, create lasting connections and nurture emerging women leaders.
As part of its schedule, the organization has announced its upcoming activities. On the next week, on September 27-29, 2022, Cassie Stratford, Senior Vice President, Legal Operations and Regulatory Compliance for Boyd Gaming Corporation, and President of the Board of Directors for GGW, and Jennifer Roberts, General Counsel, Wynn Interactive & WynnBET, and GGW Secretary, will take part in the Annual BSA/AML Gaming Conference, at the newly renovated Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. United States.
Experts, compliance officers, and other executives will join regulators, law enforcement, and government officials to outline best practices, new regulatory expectations, and enforcement actions confronting the gaming industry. This conference will cover critical topics relevant to all gaming companies: anti-money laundering, sanctions compliance, cyber security, online gaming, sports betting, cryptocurrency, and other emerging issues. On Thursday, September 29th, 10-11 AM, Stratford and Roberts will participate on the talk Women in Gaming: Leveraging Strength and Skills to Build a Successful Career in Compliance. The gaming industry has struggled in maintaining top compliance talent in a challenging environment with evolving illicit finance threats, changing regulations, and increased penalties. As importantly, the industry has tried to ensure that its C-Suites become diverse and offer equal opportunities for women and members of other underrepresented groups. This panel, composed of diverse compliance professionals from across industry, will address the various challenges (and how they overcame them) in succeeding in their professions.
WOMEN NETWORKING AT GLOBAL GAMING EXPO
Besides this, as usual, the group has coordinated a couple of meetings during next G2E edition at The Venetian Expo (Las Vegas, USA), the show that will occur October 10-13th, 2022.
On Wednesday, October 12th, 5-7 PM, at Wynn Las Vegas – XS Nightclub, women will gather for Kick Up Your Heels, an annual fundraising event to join and celebrate the honorees of the 2022 Patricia Becker Pay it Forward award. With donations received from attendees, GGW will continue to provide funds for thousands of women in the gaming industry to participate in programs and mentoring circles, and benefit from ongoing professional development.
In 2010, Patricia Becker, former gaming regulator, industry leader, and International Gaming Institute (IGI) Executive Director, created, promoted, and organized Kick Up Your Heels as a fundraiser for the IGI at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. From the beginning, this event has been a huge success. Thanks to KUYH and the support of many individuals and companies, numerous women from across the country were awarded scholarships to programs designed to enhance their business skills and careers.
The following day, Thursday, October 13th, 8:30-10 AM, Sip & Social meeting will take place. Formally known as the Lean In Breakfast, this in-person reunion at Casanova, Venetian Expo, will create an opportunity for women within the industry to connect, learn, build relationships and grow their careers.
Executives are invited to share a morning of coffee, inspiration, and networking with other industry professionals. They will also listen to keynote speaker, Anastasia Soare (Founder/CEO, Anastasia Beverly Hills), as she comments about her personal journey to a successful empire. Romanian-born beauty pioneer, creative visionary and powerhouse entrepreneur, Soare launched her namesake brand with a Beverly Hills flagship salon in 1997. Over the years, the company became one of the fastest-growing brands in the global beauty industry.
GGW membership represents women in commercial, tribal, suppliers, lottery, tourism and digital. The organization currently has more than 6,000 professional women as members. GGW has a presence in 42 states and 12 countries, with members in the following job level categories: 21% of front line leaders, 30% of supervisors and managers, 25% of directors, and 25% of vice president or above positions. In addition to its traditional offerings, development programs now include Lean-In circles and virtual masterclasses.