New Position Drives MRG Business Strategies

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Mandalay Resort Group (MRG) has named Tracy Austin to the new position of chief information officer. The appointment demonstrates the firm’s commitment to leading the field in development, procurement and implementation of innovative information technology within the gaming and resort industry.

With over $163 million in revenue derived from online alone last year, a 45 percent jump over 2002, Austin’s appointment speaks to MRG’s laser focus on
customer-driven technologies.

“Decisions on investments in our IT portfolio of products and services are no longer based solely on cost savings to the operations, but on return on investment to be derived from business usage,” said Glenn Schaeffer, MRG president and chief financial officer. “Tracy’s consulting has brought significant changes in a very short period, and we expect that her addition to our executive management team will have an immediate impact.”

Prior to joining MRG, Austin served as vice president of information technology development at Harrah’s Entertainment. Tracy and the teams she led were
recognized for leadership in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) for their technological innovation and measurable business results by CIO Magazine with the coveted “CIO Enterprise Value Award,” by InformationWeek as number one on their annual Innovation 100 list, and by DataWarehouse Institute with their “Best Demonstrated Practices Award.”

Mandalay Resort Group owns and operates 11 properties in Nevada: Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Excalibur, Circus Circus, and Slots-A-Fun in Las Vegas; Circus Circus-Reno; Colorado Belle and Edgewater in Laughlin; Gold Strike and Nevada Landing in Jean and Railroad Pass in Henderson. The company also owns and operates Gold Strike, a hotel/casino in Tunica County, Mississippi. The company owns a 50 percent interest in Silver Legacy in Reno, and owns a 50 percent in and operates Monte Carlo in Las Vegas. In addition, the company owns a 50 percent interest in and operates Grand Victoria, a riverboat in Elgin, Illinois, and owns a 53.5 percent interest in and operates MotorCity in Detroit, Michigan.