Math, Economics and Gaming

Nick Migliacci grew up in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, in the Poconos—ski country, but skiing did not scratch his itch, so to speak. “While I had a well-balanced range of interests, I particularly enjoyed math and science,” he says. “And I was a voracious reader.”

When choosing a college, Migliacci knew he wanted a curriculum that fell under the STEM umbrella: science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The University of Pennsylvania filled that role. As a sophomore, Migliacci added economics as a second major. “By the time I graduated college, I was confident that I wanted a career that utilized my economics and math skills,” he says.

Migliacci graduated from Penn in 2012 with a bachelor of arts degree with a double major in economics and mathematics. He also added classes that aligned well with his future career at Caesars: “Game theory and econometrics provided the foundation for my quantitative side,” he says. “Psychology classes helped me understand customers and coworkers alike. Literature and writing classes helped me learn effective communication.”

It was not all work and no play for Migliacci. He was an avid poker player who visited casinos when he could. At the time, it never occurred to him that the casinos could fulfill his career goals. Then a friend directed him to a job posting in the analytics department at Caesars Entertainment.

Almost 12 years later, he’s still at Caesars in Las Vegas, still working on the math and science side, as vice president of revenue management. “The job matches my interests and provides new and exciting challenges every day,” Migliacci says.

His longevity at Caesars speaks to the commitment the company has made to data and analytics. It’s a fundamental part of the corporate culture. “There are not many companies outside of Silicon Valley that are so aggressively data-driven—and certainly not in the gaming industry,” he says.

But Caesars is not just a one-horse town. The corporation offers the kinds of business areas hard to match outside of the Walt Disney Company. With casinos, hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues and more all under one roof, “Caesars provides me with exposure to more business verticals than almost anywhere else,” Migliacci says.  “This is extremely appealing.”

Caesars has provided a pair of excellent mentors along the way. Gene Lee hired Migliacci as an analyst straight out of college. He worked with Lee, chief analytics officer, for his first five years.

“I learned most of what I know about the business from him. Working on cross-functional projects that spanned hotel, gaming, entertainment, and food/beverage, I built a solid foundational understanding of the broader Caesars business,” Migliacci says.

Pavan Kapur, who was the chief commercial officer at Caesars until a few months ago, worked with Migliacci for six years. “I learned more than I could have imagined about running a business,” he says. “Pavan helped me expand my influence on the business. He taught me how to take ideas from concept to final product, how to win over stakeholders, and overcome roadblocks.”

Asked what the future holds a decade from now, Migliacci says the question is not easy to answer. “Many of the analytical techniques and programs that I use at Caesars didn’t exist or had not been broadly adopted yet a decade ago,” says Migliacci, whose relaxation time feeds into his analytical mind and his competitive drive, from crossword puzzles to poker, handicapping elections to chess.

The gaming industry will evolve a lot over the next 10 years. “I intend to evolve along with it,” Migliacci says. “At a high level, I see myself continuing to find ways to add value in a leadership role that allows me to execute a strategic vision and then work with an elite team to make that vision a reality.”