Susan Hensel, president, International Association of Gaming Regulators
Susan Hensel was re-elected as president of the International Association of Gaming Regulators during the association’s first conference in Asia, which was held recently in Singapore.
Hensel is director of licensing for the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board in the US and the first female elected to oversee the IAGR. She is credited with enhancing the association’s standing as a worldwide forum for regulatory cooperation and education and with leading the association to record membership during her first year in office.
She got into the gaming industry a month after Pennsylvania passed its Gaming Act. “I was selected by the governor’s office to be the first person in Pennsylvania to work full time on implementation of the Gaming Act,” Hensel told InterGaming. “Before members of the Gaming Control Board were named and prior to the creation of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board agency, I was tasked with laying the foundation for the new agency’s arrival as well as preparing for implementation of the new law.
“This involved a range of responsibilities including becoming an expert on Pennsylvania’s gaming law, studying the regulation of gaming in established jurisdictions, working with gaming consultants, evaluating employment applications from potential employees and generally planning for the Commonwealth’s first new agency in nearly 30 years.
“When the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board opened its doors, I was fortunate to become the agency’s first official hire. During the initial months of the agency’s start-up, I was one of only a handful of staff and, as such, served as a ‘jack of all trades’, strategically planning for the arrival of casinos in Pennsylvania, developing regulations, continuing research of established jurisdictions, hiring staff, liaising with stakeholders and planning board meetings.
This article can be read in full in the January issue of InterGaming.
