For government gaming regulators, “These are the best of times and the worst of times.”
The ‘best of times’ because such agencies (already recognized internally as vital revenue generators) are seeing an unprecedented expansion of revenue streams spurred by the rapid legalization of new wagering offerings—particularly within the online arena. The ‘worst of times’ because the effective regulation and monetization of this rapidly expanding service portfolio requires an appropriately robust technology solution that simply does not exist currently for the majority of these organizations.
Faced with the daunting challenge of quickly assimilating new lines of business amidst a highly dynamic and evolving regulatory and compliance environment, many gaming regulatory agencies are still making do with outdated technology platforms with limited feature sets designed for a much narrower scope of services. Worse, most of these systems fail to present as true pillar applications thus yielding the following deficiencies:
To maximize the value of emerging revenue opportunities, forward thinking agencies are charting a bold new path to overcome the technology deficiencies that previously impeded sustainable long-term growth. Two such organizations are the
Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and the Betting, Gaming & Lotteries Commission (BGLC).
Serving the Province of Ontario (Canada’s most populous province with 14.57 million people), the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) is a regulatory agency that registers and licenses over 52,000 businesses and individuals in the sectors of liquor, recreational cannabis, gaming/gambling, and horse racing. Established in 1998, with 680 employees across nine Regional Offices, AGCO regulates the alcohol, gaming and horse racing sectors in accordance with the principles of honesty and integrity in the public interest.
In 2015, AGCO undertook a sweeping enterprise-wide business transformation and modernization program, the “Regulatory Assurance Solution” (“RAS”) initiative. RAS would update and migrate the corporation’s operating model to a consolidated, risk-based/risk-centric program incorporating streamlined go-forward licensing and enforcement business processes.
The robust solution AGCO envisioned would be enabled by Computronix’s feature rich POSSE Platform.
A multi-phased project culminating in the full enterprise deployment of POSSE across all AGCO departments, the project would provide AGCO with a new iAGCO Customer Portal, a new Staff Portal (back office system), options for an integrated smartphone-based mobile enforcement component, and extensive, integrated ad-hoc reporting, real-time dashboarding, and business intelligence services.
Of equal importance, POSSE’s agile work management platform would provide an exceptional foundation for continuous improvement and internal optimization of the system by internal staff to help meet the province’s ambitious goal to make Ontario the most advanced digital jurisdiction in the world.
In October 2020, the fourth and final phase of the RAS Initiative went live with the provision of streamlined services for electronic gaming equipment and horse racing, completing a truly comprehensive breadth of online offerings now available on iAGCO. iAGCO also meets the agency’s Service Experience objective of offering customers an easy, convenient, and digital way of doing business, anytime from anywhere.
Leadership Awards Recognize AGCO’s Ground-Breaking Initiative
The iAGCO implementation has been a significant transformational project undertaken to modernize how the agency conducts business, aligning with AGCO’s goal to be a modern innovative regulator. AGCO itself was recognized in 2022 by the global International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) annual awards competition as the International Regulatory Award Winner for “Regulatory Excellence” for its implementation of a a new corporate operating model based on its “outcomes- based” regulatory best practices (see award announcement). In addition, former AGCO Registrar and CEO Jean Major was awarded a Canadian Gaming Industry Award for Leadership and Outstanding Contribution for leading AGCO through its significant business modernization (see award announcement).
Building on the proven framework of the AGCO success story, the Jamaica Betting, Gaming & Lotteries Commission (BGLC) embarked on a similar scope transformation project in the fall of 2022, leveraging the capabilities of the POSSE Platform.
Responsible for the regulation and operation of betting, gaming, and lotteries nationwide for over two million eligible citizens, BGLC sought a pillar development application to facilitate the Commission’s mandate for a comprehensive Gaming Management Information System (GMIS) to automate the regulatory and gaming control processes required for betting, gaming, and lottery operations in Jamaica.
Requiring a feature rich solution encompassed licensing and registration, compliance, enforcement, finance & accounting, and technology services, BGLC selected POSSE as the best enterprise solution to achieve the agency’s innovation strategy and business plan objectives.
With the project now underway, leveraging Computronix’s proven process for project success, the implementation specialists from Computronix are progressing in partnership with BGLC stakeholders on a systematic and proven (Gartner Consulting recognized) proprietary implementation and best practice, project management methodology called CW Way:
Stage 1— Project Planning and Kick-off
The Project Planning and Kick-off stage focuses on formalizing the project management plan to identify the specific processes, procedures, stakeholder analysis, schedule updates, etc. necessary to ensure a successful project. This initial draft of the project management plan becomes the basis for a multi-day on site project kick-off meeting in which the project team is engaged in discussion, fine tuning, and general input. A project schedule is produced that includes all tasks known at this time. This leads to a final accepted Project Management Plan that can now be executed.
Stage 2—Initial Configuration, Installation and Orientation
Stage 2 begins with installation of POSSE into the BGLC provided infrastructure. In parallel with these installation processes, Computronix configures POSSE in its development environment. The configuration effort will provide a representative and high leverage subset of the business processes “In Scope” for the phase to demonstrate how POSSE will meet the UI, workflow and data requirements of the project.
Stage 3—Requirements/Fit Gap Analysis
In Stage 3 the project team will come to a common understanding of how the BGLC requirements are met by POSSE functionality and document any existing gaps between POSSE and the requirements deemed to be “In Scope” for the project. The Fit/Gap will use the pre-configured POSSE as the baseline functionality and will involve focus group sessions with the BGLC’s team of SMEs, IT specialists and analysts.
Stage 4—Gap Closure
When the Fit/Gap stage is complete, the requirements that are “In Scope” and are not deemed to be met will require the gap closure process. The gap closure process follows the Computronix Software Development Methodology (SDM). Each gap closure requirement will be designed and configured by Computronix in its development and test environments. When technical configuration, development and the BGLC’s administrative data entry are complete, Computronix provides a comprehensive System demonstration to the BGLC project team.
Stage 5—Pre-UAT Training and User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
When Stage 4 is complete, Computronix installs all configuration updates and System modifications applicable to the current phase to the User Acceptance Testing (UAT) environment, which the BGLC then tests. BGLC SMEs, under the oversight of the BGLC Project Manager, will report all defects found, and Computronix will work to resolve defects (if any) and then provide further configuration updates and System modifications to be retested by the BGLC.
Stage 6 – End User Training and Implementation
During this stage the Production, Test, and Train environments will be updated with the final version of POSSE, in preparation for end user training, data migration, and the Go-Live event. Typically, senior Computronix resources will be on-site during the Go-Live event to ensure that a smooth transition is achieved.
Following Go-Live, information is compiled from both the BGLC and Computronix project team members to provide input into the Project Review Report. This report will summarize the activities, deliverables, budget expenditures, scope changes, and other relevant information for the phase and focus on lessons that can be applied to future phases or projects.
By pursing a proactive rather than a reactive approach to evolving market demands, both AGCO and BGLC are embracing an operational landscape wherein their technology platform will serve as a springboard for achieving their overarching business plan and innovation strategy. These agencies have articulated a clear vision for service excellence without technology constraints, and then challenged their technology provider to cost effectively channel this vision with a replacement system that meets their needs for a feature rich and agile system—one that meets both their initial project requirements and ever-evolving service expansion needs equally.
For gaming regulatory agencies interested in emulating a comparable best practices approach, it is vital that you consider a handful of key factors that will ultimately determine both the immediate utility and ongoing extensibility of your enterprise solution:
Like AGCO and BGLC, taking steps to ensure these mission critical factors are fully addressed by your technology solution of choice will ensure your organization is on a firm foundation to ensure the days and years ahead are truly the ‘best of times‘ for you and your Gaming Regulatory Agency.
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