MGM Resorts Bolsters Responsible Gaming Workforce to 2,000 GameSense Advisors
MGM Resorts has trained 2,000 employees as GameSense advisors.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:MGM Resorts International announced on Tuesday that it has reached a milestone in responsible gaming by certifying 2,000 staff members as GameSense advisors across more than 30 company departments. The workforce expansion follows a recent training session at MGM Grand in Las Vegas and a rollout of similar sessions across the company’s U.S. properties earlier this year, including non-gaming venues such as Shadow Creek Golf Course and T-Mobile Arena.
Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer Stephen Martino framed the investment as central to the company’s brand. “Our investment in GameSense ensures an approach where responsibility is woven into the heart of the MGM Resorts brand”, Martino said. “With GameSense at the center, we’re empowering employees to play an important role in promoting responsible gaming awareness and enjoyable experiences for our guests.”
What This Means for Guests and the Industry
The GameSense program, developed and licensed to MGM Resorts in 2017 by the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, emphasizes proactive, transparent conversations about safer play. MGM’s advisors – drawn from frontline staff to executives – are trained to recognise potentially at-risk behaviours, escalate concerns appropriately and point guests to local support and intervention resources when needed.
In practice, that means employees across hotels, casinos and adjacent entertainment venues can now reinforce player education and direct patrons to a suite of responsible-gaming tools. The program has also been adopted by BetMGM, creating a consistent responsible-gambling message across retail and digital channels tied to one of the sector’s largest operators.
“This accomplishment is made possible by leadership and team members who genuinely want to make a difference,” Garrett Farnes, MGM Resorts’ executive director of responsible gaming, said. “We’re committed to a culture of responsibility that turns every interaction into an opportunity to build trust and provide a level of hospitality that truly matters.”
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Training for GameSense advisors is research-based and designed to equip staff to have constructive, nonjudgmental exchanges with guests. Advisors learn to identify behavioural indicators of harm, to de-escalate sensitive conversations and to use referral pathways if a patron requires specialised help. MGM’s internal roll-out extended beyond casino floors to ticketing, food and beverage, events and other departments where staff may encounter at-risk guests.
Among the tools advisors may recommend is BetBlocker, a free and anonymous blocking application that restricts access to a wide range of gambling websites and apps – a resource increasingly promoted by operators as part of a layered approach to player protection.
MGM also supports industry-wide public education programs, including the American Gaming Association’s Play Smart from the Start initiative and the Have A Game Plan. Bet Responsibly public-service campaign, which targets new and experienced sports bettors with guidance on informed wagering and the importance of using licensed operators in regulated markets. “Through initiatives like GameSense, MGM Resorts continues to set a standard that makes responsible gaming an everyday expectation”, David Forman, vice president of research at the American Gaming Association, said. “As the industry continues to expand, it’s well-trained employees who are positioned to drive these important messages forward.”
As U.S. gambling markets mature and sports betting grows in more jurisdictions, operators face heightened scrutiny from regulators and the public on how they prevent and respond to problem gambling. MGM’s scale and cross-property approach make its program a potential benchmark for peers, particularly where players interact with both physical and digital products.
Looking ahead, MGM says it will continue to expand training and maintain collaboration with regulators, industry groups and treatment providers to refine its approach. For consumers, the immediate practical change is broader access to staff trained to recognise signs of harm and to offer pathways to help – where previously such guidance may have been limited to narrower parts of a casino operation.
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