Loyola University Maryland’s Sellinger School of Business and Management will honor David Norton, MBA `96, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of Caesars Entertainment Corp., as the 2011 Lattanze Executive of the Year on April 7. The program, which takes place from 5:30 - 8 p.m. at Loyola’s Graduate Center–Timonium Campus, includes “Doubling Down with Data Analytics: A Winning Strategy at Caesars,” a presentation by Norton; an award ceremony; and cocktail reception.
As senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Caesars—which owns, manages, and operates more than 50 casinos in six countries, including brands such as Caesars, Horseshoe, Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, Paris, and Flamingo—Norton is responsible for the company's direct marketing strategy, brand management, promotions, research, VIP marketing, revenue management, teleservices, Total Rewards customer loyalty program, Internet marketing, marketing reinvestment, operational customer relationship management, multicultural marketing, mobile initiatives, retail, branch offices, charter programs, and travel services.
“Although David’s background focused on marketing and sales, at Caesars, those efforts and innovations in those areas have long been rooted in information technology,” said Karyl B. Leggio, Ph.D., dean of the Sellinger School. “The ways in which he has used technology to gain a competitive advantage for his company and support its growth are excellent examples of the applications of cross-functional knowledge and leadership skills we aim to teach our students.”
Prior to joining Caesars Entertainment (then Harrah’s Entertainment) in October 1998, Norton worked in the credit card industry with American Express, Household International, and MBNA. He has a B.S. in Finance from Boston College, an MBA from Loyola University Maryland, and a master’s in management of technology from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.
The award, established in 1991 and formerly known as the Lattanze CIO of the Year, is presented by Loyola’s David D. Lattanze Center for Information Value. It recognizes leaders who have distinguished themselves in the strategic application of information technology to achieve organizational objectives. The nominating committee consists of senior executives and professors of business in the Baltimore area. Previous recipients have included LaVerne Council, corporate vice president and chief information officer for Johnson & Johnson; David Barnes, senior vice president and chief information officer for United Parcel Services; and Charles Geshke, chairman of the board and co-founder of Adobe Systems.
The event is free, but space is limited. To RSVP or for more information, please contact Jean Anne Walsh at jawalsh@loyola.edu or visit www.loyola.edu/lattanze/award.
The Lattanze Center for Information Value, a nationally recognized center of excellence for issues related to information technology, was formed in 1987 in memory of David D. Lattanze, EMBA ’82. Lattanze, who spent his entire career in the information technology industry, sought to create an educational forum where the information technology, business, and academic communities could gather and exchange problems, ideas, and other subjects of interest. The resulting partnership facilitates information sharing and research among practitioners, executives, and academics on a variety of issues ranging from the business value of IT to information security and IT innovation.
In addition to the Lattanze Center and the Sellinger School of Business and Management, this event is sponsored by GlassHouse Technologies, a Massachusetts-based global data center consulting and services company; Systems Source, a computer sales, rentals, training, network configuration and website design provider based in Hunt Valley, Md.; Mind Over Machines, an IT strategy firm based in Owings Mills, Md.; and SAS Inc., a North Carolina-based business analytics software company.
For more information or questions regarding this story, contact Media Relations Manager Nick Alexopulos at nalexopulos@loyola.edu or 410-617-5025.