Who would have predicted 10 years later all the things we’ve done?” “We talked for a couple hours and it sounded like a great opportunity. “My interview was at about 11 o’clock at night in the lobby of Harrah’s Atlantic City,” the 40-year-old father of three said. Introduced to Loveman in 1998, two months after Loveman was named chief operating officer, Norton was hired away from the credit card world to help build up the casino company’s Total Rewards customer loyalty card, which was then little more than a slot club card. Then in his late 20s, Norton was building cross-selling capabilities, establishing stronger relationships between the customer and the card. Hiring management and executive talent from industries far removed from the casino industry has been one of the hallmarks of Chairman and CEO Gary Loveman’s 10-year tenure as an executive of Harrah’s Entertainment.ĭavid Norton, who was a rising star at American Express’ consumer card group in 1998, was one of those early hires.
