Louie Latina’s parents moved to Las Vegas from Ohio 16 years ago to work in the school system. Yet it was he who became the professor.

Boulder Station’s training manager helps devise, teach and implement more than 30 classes at what could be called Stations University. Latina addresses a captive core of new employees, managers and high-level executives from across the company.

Areas ranging from personal growth and customer service to employee relations and communications fit under the umbrella. Self-taught principles have taken Latina further than a UNLV psychology degree did.

 “To me, this is one of the most rewarding jobs you can ever have in a casino,” Latina observes. “You have the rare chance to see the results of what you’ve put in and it makes you want to do more. You see a difference a manager can make on the people he leads. That person may become an approachable, easy-going person who team members can relate to. We can see employees respond to working in an environment that’s stress free. Ultimately, this all impacts the bottom line.”

The corporation bankrolls the training at more than $1 million annually. Ironically, Latina can direct executives with far more experience in the gaming business. His upbeat approach represents fresh air, the area he covers represents expertise and the limited 2.5-years of casino experience work as a positive—Latina does not sound jaded.

There are three major levels of management training, according to Latina. Learning Development One consists of eight classes ranging from core responsibility and sexual harassment to recruiting good people. Learning Development Two has 16 classes and emphasizes conflict resolution. Learning Development Three is something for which a person must be nominated by a superior. That’s 10 weekly classes of about four hours. Latina prepares like a teacher, bringing resources, movie clips and discussion items into the “classroom,” an office at Boulder Station.

And why not? A manager completing this training has practically gained another college degree.

Latina also is responsible for directing orientation, consulting classes and team building, among other areas.

“The important thing in this job is to meet people where they are,” Latina says. “You are dealing with a diverse group of people; there is not a blanket message for everyone. You must be flexible, understanding and patient. You also have to love working with people, which fortunately, I do.”

Latina arrived here via his own version of Habitat for Humanity; working as a church youth group director. He pioneered projects including leading about 30 kids into the Mexican Baja peninsula to perform volunteer work in migrant camps. Youth group members helped build structures, paint walls and homes in poor areas.

The unselfish work impressed a casino executive, who later became Latina’s father-in-law. Bob Finch, the GM of Green Valley Ranch, suggested Latina raise his profile and his pay by becoming a trainer.

 “He definitely pointed me in the right direction and this has worked out great,” Latina says. “You always love those ‘a-ha’ moments when somebody indicates they got something you were talking about. You love being on the floor and hearing a customer say that during dinner the waiter smiled, made conversation and was very nice. The customer may say that he never came here before, but now he will come back. That’s what we’re all here for.”

Service is the industry’s perpetual unreachable star. It has no ceiling. That’s why training like this provides an edge.

By Dave Bontempo

Casino Connection Sports Editor Dave Bontempo is an award-winning sports writer and broadcaster who calls boxing matches all over the world. He has covered the Philadelphia Flyers in the playoffs, as well as numerous PGA, LPGA and Seniors Golf Tour events, and co-hosted the Casino Connection television program with Publisher Roger Gros.

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