Do Good

By Jeff Anderson, Retired Idaho Lottery Director

It was a clear, cold, early January morning in 2007. C.L. “Butch” Otter was beginning his first of three consecutive terms as the governor of Idaho. Like all governors, he had to make several appointments to fill out his cabinet and team of agency directors. I was fortunate to have been appointed director of the Idaho Lottery. He asked me to come to his office at the Capitol before reporting for work. He warmly welcomed me and said, “Come on, I’ll take you to the lottery office.”No meeting, just “let’s go.”

On the way there, I asked him for advice on leading Team Lottery. His answer was quick and simple: “Do the right thing. Run it clean, take care of your people, and stay off the front page unless you’re giving away money.” Good advice. Thankfully, mission accomplished.

Retiring after nearly two decades in the industry prompted my friend Byron La Fleur to ask me to reflect on how things have changed. Some things have changed considerably. Some things, not so much.

The Stuff

Of course, advances in technology and public acceptance of new gaming opportunities are at the top of the list of things that have evolved and changed.

Respected business partners, INTRALOT, IGT, Scientific Games, and Pollard Banknote, have created more value for lotteries. Developments by these great companies in vending, terminals, mobile applications, and all of the associated components of the value chain increased the industry’s relevance to players and stakeholders. New vendors, Jackpocket, NeoGames, and others, delivered unique, integrated solutions. Peter Sullivan and Moti Malul were tenacious but had to be patient. Government agencies don’t always move at the speed of business or markets—who knew?

To be fair, new ideas were accepted quickly by some lotteries who have more room to run because of the willingness of their citizens to embrace new gaming products and the technology for their delivery. Sports betting comes to mind.

The People

What hasn’t changed is the importance of people. The humans who run the day-to-day operations of U.S. lotteries are essential. They are there before the new director arrives and after the director leaves. The technology, finance, marketing, sales, and management teams are the people you see at every conference, year after year.

I know every lottery director, from the most tenured to the newest, understands who those people are and why they’re so important.

Within my first 45 days on the job, we were changing our central gaming system vendor for the first time. Now, I didn’t know much about lottery yet but had extensive experience in technology upgrades and changes (analog broadcast television to digital broadcast television). I did know this: the central system is wide-ranging and complicated. A hot change with zero room for error was the plan. I asked COO Becky Schroeder “It’ll be okay, right?” She said, “It’ll be FINE.” It was. There were a few open items but everything worked seamlessly and it was transparent to our retailers and players. Becky represents the kind of people I’m talking about whom every lottery director cherishes.

I’m also impressed by the dedication of the people who work for the vendors, NASPL, and MUSL. They are also essential. They’re all part of the collective Team Lottery U.S.A.

The Beneficiaries

Finally, I never forgot Governor Otter’s advice. We exist to benefit the citizens. That will never change. The transfers provided come from the willing, not the coerced. The recipients of lottery net revenues vary but our collective mission is the same:

Do Good.