7 - The Casino Conundrum: Navigating Innovation and Regulation with Caesars Sportsbook & Casino's Thomas Palaio

03/12/24 • 22 min

Your host, Thomas Watkins, talks with the Product Operations Lead of iGaming of Caesars Sportsbook & Casino, Thomas Palaio. Thomas's career trajectory is a testament to the evolution of a tech professional. Starting with hands-on roles such as help desk support, he quickly moved into the realm of DevOps and cloud technologies at a time when continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) were just gaining momentum. His passion for solving complex problems and creating value for both customers and businesses led him to the product space. The satisfaction derived from the feedback loop of identifying and resolving issues is what keeps him motivated in his current role.

As the COO overseeing product strategy and operations for the online casino division at Caesars Entertainment, Thomas is responsible for delivering iOS, web, and Android casino experiences across five states in North America. He highlighted the unique challenges of working within a heavily regulated industry, where every product move must be approved by state boards and comply with longstanding laws.

One might assume that innovation is stifled in such a regulated environment, but Thomas provided a different perspective. The online gaming industry is relatively young, and there's a wealth of product development opportunities before hitting regulatory constraints. His focus is on delivering significant value to customers through innovation within the existing framework.

Learn more about Thomas's work HERE.

Connect with Thomas on LinkedIn HERE.

Think you'd be a great guest on the show? Apply HERE.

Learn more about Thomas's work at 3Leaf HERE.

Learn more about Thomas's work HERE.

Connect with Thomas on LinkedIn HERE.

Think you'd be a great guest on the show? Apply HERE.

Learn more about Thomas's work at 3Leaf HERE.

Previous Episode

6 - Understanding the Problem Space: Key to Successful Product Development with Applied Systems' Vijay Rengarajan

Your host, Thomas Watkins, talks with the Director of Product Management of Applied Systems, Vijay Rengarajan. Vijay's journey began in programming and evolved through a business analyst role at Tata Consultancy Services. His experience in the insurance domain laid the foundation for his customer-centric approach. In 2016, he transitioned to product management, where he could apply his skills to both new product development (0 to 1) and scaling existing products (1 to n).

The first step in product development is recognizing a genuine need. Vijay shared an example of creating a network management system for insurance agencies, where no existing product met their unique requirements. The key was to conduct extensive user research and engage directly with potential users to understand their pain points.

Connect with Vijay on LinkedIn HERE.

Think you'd be a great guest on the show? Apply HERE.

Learn more about Thomas's work at 3Leaf HERE.

Next Episode

8 - Unlocking the Power of Data: A Game-Changer for Understanding Customer Behavior with Funnelytics' Mikael Dia

Your host, Thomas Watkins, talks with the Founder of Funnelytics, Mikael Dia. Mikael's journey with Funnelytics started when he was running a marketing agency. He identified a clear market need for a tool that visualizes marketing strategies and data while tracking the intricate paths customers navigate across various online platforms. This led to the inception of Funnelytics, a software designed to map out traffic sources, pages, and conversions, providing a detailed view of the customer journey.

Mikael emphasized the importance of visualization in understanding customer behavior. Funnelytics sets itself apart as an analytics tool that seamlessly integrates with other platforms, enabling users to link their CRM and page builders to track customer activities. This integration means businesses can incorporate Funnelytics without the need to abandon their existing tools, such as HubSpot or ClickFunnels.

Learn more about Mikael's work HERE.

Connect with Mikael on LinkedIn HERE.

Think you'd be a great guest on the show? Apply HERE.

Learn more about Thomas's work at 3Leaf HERE.