A Diagnosis of Inherent Problems in Enhancing Service Quality through Internal Marketing and Organizational Identification in Macau and Singapore Casinos

With spectacular growth in demand since opening the market to foreign competition, executives within the Macau casino industry have focused their attention on enhancing capacity and opening new casino properties. Meanwhile, the Singapore casino market, barely two years old, has already produced revenues comparable to the Las Vegas Strip. Despite stellar past successes, the long-term scenario for the casino industry in both Macau and Singapore could spell trouble. Specifically, service quality stands to suffer because operators have not devoted adequate thought to their service culture and internal marketing strategy. With overall capacity in Asia slated to increase significantly in the next couple of years, the labor shortage for casino companies in Macau and Singapore will get more acute. Current impressive revenues notwithstanding, increased capacity will also put pressure on marketing to attract and retain valued customers. In light of these developments, we review five key challenges to internal marketing practices for casinos in Macau and Singapore: culture, climate, recruitment, compensation, and training.