Gary Loveman

Loveman grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana as the youngest of three siblings. His father was a factory worker at Western Electric and his mother a homemaker. As a child, he was interested in math and active in sports. Loveman went on to attend Wesleyan University where he earned a bachelor's degree in economics in 1982.{{cite web |url=http://investor.caesars.com/management.cfm |title=Management |work=caesars.com |publisher=Caesars Entertainment |access-date=October 7, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004070233/http://investor.caesars.com/management.cfm |archive-date=October 4, 2013 |url-status=dead }} After graduating from Wesleyan, Loveman worked for the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston for two years as an economic researcher before pursuing a doctorate degree at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 1989, Loveman completed his PhD in economics.{{cite news |title=Gary Loveman, PhD '89 |author=Liv Gold |url=http://www.technologyreview.com/article/417645/gary-loveman-phd-89/ |work=MIT Technology Review |date=February 23, 2010 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}

After graduating from MIT at the age of 29, Loveman began teaching at Harvard Business School, where he was a professor for nine years, and continues as a senior lecturer[https://hbr.org/2022/05/act-like-a-scientist "Act Like A Scientist"] by Stefan Thomke and Gary W. Loveman; Harvard Business Review; May–June 2022. While at Harvard, Loveman taught Service Management and developed an interest in the service industry and customer service.{{cite news |title=Teacher's Bet |author=Julie Schlosser |url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2004/03/08/363688/index.htm |work=Fortune |date=March 8, 2004 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} In 1991 he was hired as a consultant for the casino company Harrah's Entertainment.{{cite news |title=Gary Loveman of Harrah's Entertainment: Gambling Man |url=http://www.institutionalinvestor.com/Article/1026029/Gary-Loveman-of-Harrahs-Entertainment-Gambling-man.html?ArticleId=1026029#.UjCk6WSgm5M |work=Institutional Investor |date=July 12, 2005 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} He also launched a side career as a speaker and consultant after a 1994 paper he co-authored, titled "Putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work", attracted the attention of companies including Disney, McDonald's, and American Airlines. The paper focused on the relationship between company profits and customer loyalty, and the importance of rewarding employees who interact with customers. His later Harvard Business Review magazine articles include "Diamonds in the Data Mine",[https://hbr.org/2003/05/diamonds-in-the-data-mine "Diamonds in the Data Mine"] by Gary G. Loveman; Harvard Business Review; May 2003. and "Act Like a Scientist", with fellow HBS professor, Stefan Thomke, in 2022.

In 1997, Loveman sent a letter to Phil Satre, the then-chief executive officer of Harrah's Entertainment, in which he offered advice for growing the company. Loveman again began to consult for Harrah's, and in 1998 he was offered the position of chief operating officer. He initially took a two-year sabbatical from Harvard to take on the role, at the end of which Loveman decided to remain with the company.

As COO, Loveman was responsible for the establishment of the company's Total Rewards loyalty management system, which gathers data on casino customers. The program allowed the company to analyze the travel and spending habits of their customers. Through this, Harrah's determined that repeat slot players, not high rollers, were most profitable. Under Loveman's leadership Harrah's began to focus on building loyalty and bringing more of these gamblers to the casino. Loveman also established a rewards program for Harrah's employees of all levels, based on customer satisfaction. He served as Harrah's Entertainment's chief operating officer until 2003.

In 2003, Loveman became chief executive officer of Harrah's, replacing Phil Satre.{{cite news |title=How to Survive in Vegas |author=Karl Taro Greenfeld |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-08-06/loveman-plays-new-purely-empirical-game-as-harrah-s-ceo.html |work=Bloomberg Businessweek |date=August 5, 2010 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} By 2005, Loveman had grown Harrah's into the largest casino operator in the world with the acquisition of Caesars Entertainment.{{cite news |title=Harrah's buying Caesars |url=https://money.cnn.com/2004/07/15/news/fortune500/harrahscaesar/ |work=CNN |date=July 15, 2004 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} In 2008, he led the company as it transitioned from a public to private company, after being acquired by private equity firms Apollo Global Management and TPG Capital for approximately $30 billion.{{cite news |title=Harrah's CEO: Las Vegas still weak |author=Deena Beasley |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-travel-leisure-summit-harrahs-idUKTRE61L57420100222?pageNumber=1 |work=Reuters |date=February 22, 2010 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}

In the wake of the financial crisis of the late 2000s the company experienced a decrease in revenue and increased debt associated with the 2008 buyout by Apollo and TPG. Loveman cut costs and renegotiated the company's maturing debt to avoid defaulting. His leadership of the company through the debt restructuring in 2009 was praised by the American Gaming Association president and CEO Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr.

During his tenure at Caesars, he introduced an employee health program with on-site clinics, Wellness Rewards.{{cite news |title=Gary Loveman's statement on 'Employer Wellness Programs: Better Health Outcomes and Lower Costs' |url=https://www.businessroundtable.org/resources/dr-gary-lovemans-statement-employer-wellness-programs-better-health-outcomes-and-lower |work=Business Roundtable |date=2015 }}

In 2010, Loveman oversaw Harrah's transition to the name Caesars Entertainment Corporation and led an effort to take the company public again.{{cite news |title=Harrah's changes corporate name to Caesars |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2010/11/23/harrahs-changes-corporate-name.html |work=St. Louis Business Journal |date=November 23, 2010 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} The company successfully completed an initial public offering in 2012, selling approximately two percent of its shares.{{cite news |title=Caesars Surges 71% in Debut After Slashing IPO From 2010 Try |author=Lee Spears |url=http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-02-08/caesars-surges-71-in-debut-after-slashing-ipo-from-2010-try.html |work=Bloomberg Businessweek |date=February 8, 2012 |access-date=September 17, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130601014448/http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-02-08/caesars-surges-71-in-debut-after-slashing-ipo-from-2010-try.html |archive-date=June 1, 2013 |url-status=dead }}

A proponent of legalizing online gambling,{{cite news |title=Maybe Global Gaming Expo (G2E) unites us |author=Phil Hevener |url=http://www.gamingtoday.com/articles/article/43356-Maybe_Global_Gaming_Expo_G2E_unites_us |work=Gaming Today |date=September 24, 2013 |accessdate=October 4, 2013}} Loveman has written opinion pieces on the topic, published, in example, by Las Vegas Review-Journal and CNN Money.{{cite news |title=The Nightly Turbo: Gary Loveman on Legalizing Online Poker, PokerStars Cash-outs Coming, and More |author=Elaine Chaivarlis |url=http://www.pokernews.com/news/2011/04/nightly-turbo-loveman-legalizing-online-poker-pokerstars-10278.htm |work=Pokernews.com |date=April 26, 2011 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}{{cite news |title=President and CEO of Caesars unleashes defence of online poker |url=http://www.pokernewsreport.com/president-and-ceo-of-caesars-unleashes-defence-of-online-poker-2176 |work=Pokernewsreport.com |date=May 9, 2011 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} He helped to launch Caesars' online gambling operation in Nevada in September 2013.{{cite news |title=Caesars to Start Online Poker Service in Nevada This Week |author=Christopher Palmeri |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-16/caesars-to-offer-online-poker-in-nevada-under-world-series-brand.html |work=Bloomberg Businessweek |date=September 16, 2013 |accessdate=October 4, 2013}}

As CEO, Loveman expanded Harrah's from 15 casinos in 2003 to over 54 locations in 2013, through the acquisition of Caesars, Horseshoe Gaming Holding, Planet Hollywood, the Imperial Palace casino, and the World Series of Poker brand.{{cite news |title=Harrah's CEO loves heels, hates Vegas palaces |author=Deena Beasley |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-travel-leisure-summit-loveman-idUSTRE61O5XV20100225 |work=Reuters |date=February 25, 2010 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}{{cite news |title=Company News; Harrah's Agrees to buy Horseshoe Gaming |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/12/business/company-news-harrah-s-agrees-to-buy-horseshoe-gaming.html |work=The New York Times |date=September 12, 2003 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} Loveman announced in February 2015 that he was going to step down from his post as CEO.{{cite news |title=Gary Loveman Resigns as Caesars' CEO |url=http://www.casinonewsdaily.com/2015/02/05/gary-loveman-resigns-caesars-ceo/ |work=Casino News Daily |date=2015 }} He remained chairman{{cite news |title=Aetna Hires Top Hertz Lawyer As General Counsel, Continuing A Consumer-Brands Push |author=Dan Haar |url=http://www.courant.com/business/hc-haar-aetna-hires-another-outsider-20160401-story.html |work=Hartford Courant |date= 2016}}{{cite news |title=Gambling exec Gary Loveman to join Aetna|url=http://www.courier-journal.com/story/money/companies/2015/09/30/gambling-exec-loveman-join-aetna/73089302/ |work=Courier Journal |date=2015 }} until 2017.{{cite news |title=Boston Children's Hospital Receives Grant to Support Malaria Research and Music Therapy Program Honoring Dr. Gary Loveman |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/boston-childrens-hospital-receives-grant-to-support-malaria-research-and-music-therapy-program-honoring-dr-gary-loveman-300551164.html |work=Boston Children's Hospital |date=2017 |accessdate=September 20, 2018}}

He became an executive vice president of Aetna and president of its Consumer Health and Services organization, Healthagen, in October 2015. He also joined Aetna's executive committee. Hired to expand both the consulting arm and health services, he and the division were charged with leading Aetna's strategies concerning "population health and consumer engagement," in part using data analytics and marketing. With the unit, Loveman developed digital tools and expanded Aetna's "consumer health and services analytics capabilities." In September 2016 Aetna opened a "consumer business hub" in Wellesley, Massachusetts under Loveman's oversight. Aetna announced in December 2017 that it would become a stand-alone unit inside CVS Health in 2018. Loveman stepped down from Aetna in January 2018.{{cite news |title=Aetna consumer/health exec departs |url=http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/article/20180126/NEWS01/180129934/aetna-consumerhealth-exec-departs |work=Hartford Business |date= 2018 }}

In January 2019, he co-founded Well Dot, Inc., a personal health management platform The company developed an artificial intelligence (AI) app tool designed to increase individual health engagement, which it markets to employers, community health organizations, and directly to consumers.[https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/counties/orange-county/article237512169.html "Health technology firm to bring 400 jobs to Chapel Hill’s Franklin Street"] by TAMMY GRUBB; The News & Observer; NOVEMBER 19, 2019.[https://grepbeat.com/2020/05/19/wells-health-platform-gives-you-control-in-tackling-health-goals/ "Well’s Health Platform Gives You Control In Tackling Health Goals"] by Suzanne Blake; Grep Beat; May 19, 2020. Well raised its initial seed funding in November 2019, including from General Catalyst and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina.[https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-14/a-ceo-s-las-vegas-lessons-give-health-startup-new-cards-to-play?sref=xlHcxOOx "A CEO's Las Vegas Lessons Give Health Startup New Cards to Play"] by Emma Court; Bloomberg; November 14, 2019.[https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/digital-health/former-aetna-exec-launches-consumer-health-it-platform.html "Former Aetna exec launches consumer health IT platform"] by Andrea Park; Becker's Hospital Review; November 20, 2019. Headquartered in North Carolina and Massachusetts, Loveman serves as CEO.[https://www.adammendler.com/blog/gary-loveman "THIRTY MINUTE MENTORS PODCAST TRANSCRIPT: FORMER CAESARS CEO GARY LOVEMAN"] Adam Mendler; Episode 105; THIRTY MINUTE MENTORS. Accessed November 9, 2022.

Loveman is a member of the board of directors of the Boston Celtics,{{cite news |title=Gary W. Loveman |url=https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=6615 |work=Faculty and Research }}{{cite web | url=https://celticsunited.com/about | title=Boston Celtics United }} of which he acquired a minority stake in 2007.{{cite news |title=Don't bet on being able to wager on Cavs at Cleveland casino, even if Ohio legalizes sports wagering |url=https://www.cleveland.com/casino/index.ssf/2018/05/dont_bet_on_being_able_to_wage.html |work=Cleveland.com |date=May 17, 2018 }} He also served on the board of directors at FedEx, Coach, Inc.{{cite news |title=One on One with Gary Loveman—Hail to the Chief of Caesar's Entertainment |author=Laura Schreffler |url=http://www.hauteliving.com/2013/07/one-on-one-gary-loveman-hail-to-the-chief/378311/ |work=Haute Living |date=July 23, 2013 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}{{cite web |url=http://investors.fedex.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=73289&p=irol-govboard |title=Board of Directors |work=fedex.com |publisher=FedEx |access-date=September 17, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131225040645/http://investors.fedex.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=73289&p=irol-govboard |archive-date=December 25, 2013 }} and of the American Gaming Association,{{cite web |url=http://www.americangaming.org/leadership/board-directors |title=Board of Directors |work=americangaming.org |publisher=American Gaming Association |access-date=September 19, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130106090201/http://www.americangaming.org/leadership/board-directors |archive-date=January 6, 2013 }} of which he previously served as chairman, from 2007 to 2009.{{cite news |title=Loveman Elected to AGA Chair |url=http://www.casinoenterprisemanagement.com/articles/february-2007/whats-shakin-february-2007 |work=Casino Enterprise Management |date=February 2007 |access-date=October 4, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919092029/http://www.casinoenterprisemanagement.com/articles/february-2007/whats-shakin-february-2007 |archive-date=September 19, 2015 }}

He was chairman of the Business Roundtable's Health and Retirement Committee.{{cite web |url=http://businessroundtable.org/committees/consumer-health-retirement/ |title=Health and Retirement Committee |work=businessroundtable.org |publisher=Business Roundtable |access-date=September 19, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20130906172718/http%3A//businessroundtable.org/committees/consumer%2Dhealth%2Dretirement/ |archive-date=September 6, 2013 }} In 2012, he was named to the President's Export Council.{{cite news |title=Caesars' Loveman Appointed to President's Export Council |url=http://ggbmagazine.com/issue/vol-11-no-4-april-2012/article/caesars-loveman-appointed-to-presidents-export-council |work=Global Gaming Business |date=March 30, 2012 |accessdate=September 17, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517193420/http://ggbmagazine.com/issue/vol-11-no-4-april-2012/article/caesars-loveman-appointed-to-presidents-export-council |archive-date=May 17, 2012 |url-status=dead }} He was previously a member of MIT's Department of Economics' visiting committee.{{cite web |url=http://economics.mit.edu/about/vc |title=Visiting Committee |work=mit.edu |publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology Department of Economics |accessdate=October 2, 2013}} Loveman and his wife have also helped with fundraising efforts for Joslin Diabetes Center.{{cite web |url=http://www.joslin.org/giving/gary_loveman_and_kathleen_welsh.html |title=Gary Loveman and Kathleen Walsh: A Pair Wins for Joslin |work=joslin.org |publisher=Joslin Diabetes Center |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} Loveman is also on the board of trustees of Boston Children's Hospital.{{cite web |url=http://giving.childrenshospital.org/partners/volunteer-leadership/trust-board.html |title=Board of Trustees, Boston Children's Hospital |work=childrenshospital.com |publisher=Boston Children's Hospital |accessdate=October 2, 2013}} In 2017, Boston Children's Hospital announced that $350,000 had been donated in honor of Loveman by his former colleagues to fund malaria research and a music therapy program. In 2019, he joined the boards of The Aspen Group[https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2019-04-10/dynamic-businessman-leading-economist-gary-loveman-joins-aspen-dental-management-inc-s-board-of-directors?sref=xlHcxOOx "Dynamic Businessman, Leading Economist Gary Loveman Joins Aspen Dental Management, Inc.’s Board of Directors"] Bloomberg; April 10, 2019. and diagnostic device startup Healthy.io.

Loveman's career was the subject of a Stanford Graduate School of Business case study in 2003,{{cite web |url=https://gsbapps.stanford.edu/cases/detail1.asp?Document_ID=2445 |title=Gary Loveman and Harrah's Entertainment |author=Jeffrey Pfeffer |author2=Victoria Chang |year=2003 |work=stanford.edu |publisher=Stanford Graduate School of Business |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} and he was recognized as the "best CEO" in the gaming and lodging industry by Institutional Investor magazine in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.{{cite news |title=Magazine names Loveman industry's best CEO |url=http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2005/jan/18/magazine-names-loveman-industrys-best-ceo/ |date=January 18, 2005 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}{{cite news |title=Harrah's Entertainment Reports First-Quarter Results |url=http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/154000320/4027244.html |work=Hospitality Net |date=April 27, 2006 |accessdate=October 7, 2013}}{{cite news |title=The Best CEOs |url=http://www.institutionalinvestor.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=1117752 |work=Institutional Investor |date=January 10, 2007 |accessdate=September 17, 2013}} In 2013, Loveman was inducted into the American Gaming Association's Gaming Hall of Fame{{cite news |title=Gaming Association chief to be 2013 hall inductee |url=http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/aug/31/nv-gambling-hall-of-fame/ |agency=Associated Press |date=August 31, 2013 |access-date=September 17, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230235452/http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/aug/31/nv-gambling-hall-of-fame/ |archive-date=December 30, 2013 }} and awarded the Education Hero Award by the Las Vegas-based Public Education Foundation.{{cite news |title=Public Education Foundation honors Schorr, Loveman |author=Dorothy Huffey |url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/columns-blogs/rj-goes-party/public-education-foundation-honors-schorr-loveman |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |date=September 28, 2013 |accessdate=October 4, 2013}}

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Category:1960 births

Category:Living people

Category:American chief executives

Category:American casino industry businesspeople

Category:American chief operating officers

Category:Harvard Business School faculty

Category:MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences alumni

Category:Wesleyan University alumni