Mohegan Hires Former Caesars Executive
Popular casino operator Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE) has announced the appointment of Haven Pope as its latest Chief Accounting Officer. Pope will use Mohegan’s financial reporting and analysis systems, as well as its subsidiaries globally, to promote future growth and development. He most recently served as Senior Director of Accounting & Internal Controls for Caesars Entertainment.
Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE) has announced the appointment of Haven Pope as its latest Chief Accounting Officer. Pope had previously worked at Caesars Entertainment. ©PatternPictures/Pixabay
Pope’s Extensive Experience Will Strengthen Mohegan Brand
The well-known casino operator brand Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE) has just recently announced the appointment of Haven Pope as its latest Chief Accounting Officer. Pope is expected to oversee an interconnected system of financial reporting and analysis for Mohegan, as well as its global subsidiaries, with the ultimate goal of promoting future growth and development.
The President and Chief Executive Officer of Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, Ray Pineault, expressed in a statement that he believes Pope’s extensive experience in corporate finance will be a strong asset for strengthening the casino operator’s brand:
“The Chief Accounting Officer is critical to Mohegan’s success as a global, tribal entity, and we have the utmost confidence that Haven will exceed expectations in this role. With his impressive experience and strong background in corporate finance, we are confident his leadership and technical accounting skills will further enable us to strengthen our position as a leading integrated entertainment resort brand.”– Ray Pineault, President and Chief Executive Officer, Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment
As part of his new role, Haven Pope will be expected to report directly to Mohegan’s Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, Carol Anderson. He will spearhead the financial reporting, technical accounting, and corporate accounting teams and will be fundamental in facilitating a constant flow of communication within the property’s finance teams, the audit committee and external auditors.
Due to this change in roles, Peter Roberti will be transitioning over to the role of Vice President of Finance and Corporate Treasurer, where he will be handling treasury operations, tax support and capital structure activities.
Former Caesars Exec Will Also Optimize Mohegan’s Core Systems
Haven Pope’s further responsibilities as part of his role as Mohegan’s Chief Accounting Officer will be to optimize core processes and systems in the operator’s accounting department in order to drive efficiency across the brand and conform with professional accounting standards and best practices within the industry. His new role will see him manage and direct all external financial reporting and retain the financial accounting team, all while developing, motivating, and retaining top talent.
Pope holds more than 20 years of finance and accounting experience, having most recently served as the Senior Director of Accounting & Internal Controls at Caesars Entertainment. While there, he led a team of professionals covering multiple centralized accounting functions across the Caesars brand, focusing on technical accounting, accounting policies, internal controls and financial reporting.
In addition to his accounting and internal controls role at Caesars, Pope also handled strategic finance transformation projects and directed accounting compliance for most areas of the entertainment resort brand. Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE) highlighted these experiences as reasons why he is best suited for his new position at the operator:
“These experiences will undoubtedly serve him well as the newly appointed Chairman of MGE’s Accounting Steering Committee and Disclosure Committee.”
Before Pope landed at Caesars Entertainment, he also had stints working for CarMax, Deloitte & Touche and Cherry, Bekaert & Holland. It was here where he developed his experience in technical accounting, accounting policies, internal controls, financial reporting, finance transformation and a range of financial auditing and reporting.
Mohegan Appointed New COO in September 2021
Mohegan has been undergoing a decent amount of personnel changes as of late, having announced as recently as September 2021 that it had appointed a new chief operating officer: Jody Madigan, who is the former vice president of strategic execution and business development for Seneca Gaming.
Madigan will be expected to report to Mohegan’s president and chief executive, Ray Pineault. He will also oversee all general managers and ensure all strategic planning is in accordance with the operator’s executive leadership group and the Mohegan Tribe.
Much like Haven Pope, Joey Madigan also holds over 20 years’ worth of experience in the gambling industry — something which Mohegan CEO Ray Pineault felt necessary to highlight in his statement on Madigan’s appointment:
“We are pleased to welcome Jody to our executive leadership team to ensure business strategy alignment and continuity across all of our properties. With more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality and casino gaming industry, Jody’s leadership and expertise will contribute to MGE’s continued growth and success.”
FanDuel and Mohegan Partnered Together in Connecticut in July
As for many operators, it’s been a highly active year for Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, who in July 2021 partnered together with renowned online gambling provider FanDuel in an exclusive market access deal in the state of Connecticut.
Since the Mohegan Tribe’s home state is Connecticut, the market access deal will allow FanDuel to provide both retail and online sports betting in the state. FanDuel president Amy Howe expressed excitement over the matter, calling the state a “key market”:
“Mohegan Sun is an iconic casino and entertainment destination in the Northeast, and we are excited to announce our first tribal gaming partnership with one of the leading tribal operators in the United States. We have some incredible plans for the retail space at Mohegan Sun, with the potential to be the largest FanDuel sportsbook in the United States. When we combine the retail sports betting experience with the opportunity for online sports betting and iGaming, Connecticut is going to be a key state for us as we look towards the start of football season.”– Amy Howe, President, FanDuel
