Crown Resorts’ culture slammed in review by Deloitte

A cultural review of Crown Resorts has revealed a large number of employees at its Perth casino fear they will be penalised for raising concerns.

A royal commission is examining whether Crown Resorts is suitable to operate its Perth Casino. Picture:Tony McDonough

A cultural review of Crown Resorts’ Perth casino has revealed a large number of staff feel they may be penalised by management for raising concerns, underscoring ongoing cultural issues at the under-fire James Packer-backed group.

The review will undoubtedly raise the concern of Crown’s board and new CEO Steve McCann who are attempting to spearhead a cultural overhaul at the casino group, with a majority of surveyed Perth employees believing Crown’s directors do not “consistently behave in accordance with Crown’s values.”

The observations come in an expert report on a recent cultural review of Crown undertaken by Deloitte that was prepared for WA’s Royal Commission into Crown Resorts.

The commission is examining whether Crown is suitable to operate its Perth casino, the only one in the state.

It comes after an inquiry temporarily revoked Crown’s NSW casino licence in February, while a separate Victorian royal commission placed the group’s Melbourne casino licence on a two year probationary period under the watch of a state-appointed “special manager.”

Both probes slammed Crown’s “profits-first” culture that led to Crown dealing with cashed up VIP gamblers with potential links to organised crime.

Report author and Kiel Advisory Group Managing Director Elizabeth Arzadon said the Deloitte review revealed that “serious leadership weaknesses exist not only at the top of the organisation, but also at middle management and supervisor levels.”

“Until leaders at all levels demonstrate the skill and will to inspire, support and role model new behaviours, Crown’s cultural transformation will encounter serious barriers,” she said.

The report reveals that only “42 per cent of Perth staff responded positively to the survey item ‘Board members at Crown consistently behave in accordance with Crown’s values.”

On the middle management to supervisor level, only 41 per cent of Crown Perth staff believed that their direct supervisors put their own self-interest ahead of the company.

Mz Arzadon said there “is a lack of psychological safety between staff and management, undermining the likelihood of issues being identified,” with only 55 per cent of Crown Perth staff responded positively to the survey item “I am confident that I will not be penalised for raising concerns.”

The review contained alarming anonymous comments from Crown employees that highlighted the extent to which rule-bending was encouraged to maximise gaming revenue.

“In VIP, we are sometimes told to do things to keep certain patrons (not even high paying ones) happy even though I know it goes against compliance,” one employee said.

Overall, only 38 per cent of staff agreed that their co-workers were penalised for taking risks, even if their actions generated “positive results”.

Ms Arzadon said certain departments at the casino presented a higher risk to the group, with just 19 per cent of surveillance staff at Crown Perth believing they won’t be penalised for raising concerns.

“Overall, the Surveillance team displays a range of characteristics that suggest team dynamics that could be described as ‘toxic’, including a deep resentment towards management, a known predictor of maladaptive behaviour,” she said.

“It would require far more evidence of change at multiple levels to conclude any material progress has been made on the issue of psychological safety in Perth.”

The WA Commission will sit next Wednesday for the last time until late January, when oral closing arguments will be heard.

It will report to the state government on March 4.