A Look at Caesar's Employee-Driven Approach to Sustainability

Published February 14, 2012

Caesars Entertainment, the world's most diversified gaming company, doesn't play games when it comes to its commitment to environmental stewardship.

Adopted in 2000, CodeGreen is a significant part of the company's philosophy and articulates the corporate ethos, guides their relationships with stakeholders, and steers their business operations for a winning combination.

With 52 resorts (36 in the U.S.), Caesars bases its broad-reaching programs on its Code of Commitment, pledging to:

Employees - to treat them with respect and provide them with opportunities to build satisfying careers;
Guests - to promote responsible gaming; and
Communities - to make them healthy and vibrant places to work.

"Caesar's Code also states their belief in responsible stewardship of the environment and their commitment to environmental sustainability and energy conservation," said Gwen Migita , Director of Sustainability & Community Engagement, while presenting at the 2012 GreenBiz Forum in New York. "By engaging employees, operational improvements also enhance attractiveness to customers and increase the brand value." The Code Green pillars of sustainability strategy include:

stakeholder communication and engagement;
core environmental performance indicators;
organizational commitment and alignment including synergies to drive the sustainability mission;
adoption of best practices;
leveraging scale; and
coordination of owner programs, resulting in enhanced brand value and customer loyalty, costs savings, revenue growth, community pride, and employee satisfaction.

Developers of the sustainability program realized that process and people take years to develop. Therefore, sustainability is embedded in training. General surveys include sustainability questions. Programs are not mandated, but rather ask for input. Leadership-backed benefits include incentives for managers. Employees can even win credits for fulfilling home-based initiatives, while earning incentives for sharing information with other employees. One employee in Arizona, for example, built a heat transfer unit on her roof.

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A Look at Caesar's Employee-Driven Approach to Sustainability

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