The Key is Organization, Efficiency and a Good Team

Mr. Terziev, what is it like to manage a government institution as the State Commission of Gambling?

- If you have a good team, this is not so difficult. Before I took the position of a President of the State Commission of Gambling I had already worked for one year with this team as a head of department Administrative, Legal and Information Services, and Information Security at the Commission. I knew the people and I think I succeeded in imposing my style of work without creating unnecessary tension.

Regardless of the positions I have held I have always believed that the success of a manager depends on his ability to efficiently handle the tasks and problems and not to leave unaddressed or unresolved issues. Next to this, a manager has to distribute the assignments in such a way as to secure his subordinates have equivalent workload. In other words, I believe that success is a matter of good organization.

Once I have distributed the tasks, I always demand feedback. The results are discussed with the colleagues. I make my best to resolve the problems on time, after I have prioritized them. I am not that type of a person who believes he is always right. I am open to reasonable suggestions and I would change my position if I find the counter arguments reasonable and convincing. I am also sure that for a team to work well it should be motivated. Whenever there are symptoms for even the slightest “friction” in the team, the problem should immediately be addressed because otherwise it may deepen and escalate in a most unexpected moment.

How does one become a manager in Bulgaria? Do you share the belief that the key is to start from the bottom and go to the top step by step?

- I definitely believe that the “step by step” mode works. At least because when you are directly appointed as a manager, whether in the private or in the public sector, there is a risk that you would be misled by people who have been long in the business, or to place yourself in such a situation as to be misled, regardless of the type of education, diplomas and certificates you have. If you are not familiar with the specifics of the business and the nuances of the problem, you can be in trouble. Sometimes there are possibilities to be promoted right away but it helps if you have been “in the kitchen”, if you have some working experience in the sector. Naturally, this cannot be linked with a specific time period, because some people get into the job for a month, others – for a year, and some never manage to do so. It is a matter of training and aptitude.

The promotion opportunities are another issue. Again it depends on the individual – whether he has the motivation and the will to develop. Furthermore, when you show that you are a professional and an expert in your area of work you will not remain unnoticed and unappreciated by your superiors. The appreciation is not purely material, I mean the promotion in a rank or in a position, the appraisal or just the expression of gratitude for well done work can do wonders and motivate the staff to work even better.

What personal qualities should a manager have in order to be a success, regardless of the area in which he works?

- First of all one should be professional and stick to high professional standards. The manager should also know the business in big detail so as to be able to plan in the short and medium term, and be proactive. In the next place, he should constantly work to improve himself. Not least in importance is the personal value system. Regardless of all circumstances one should remain truthful to himself and fight for his principles. The manager should also be a psychologist in order to motivate his staff and create a good team. His own success depends on this directly.

What would you prefer to be – a manager of strong personalities who “pull the wires” to themselves, or a manager of a team?

- The best option is to be a manager of a team of strong personalities. To achieve this the manager should motivate the people and encourage them to develop their positive qualities so that the company goes ahead. If the personalities are strong but individualistic it may happen like in the fable about the eagle, the crab and the pike – they are all pulling the cart in their own direction and the cart does not move. It is like a football team – when it is well composed and each player knows his place and functions things move ahead. It is normal to have a break once in a while. The point is to unite the people for the achievement of the goals.

Is it difficult to build the image of a supervisory body, regulating such a specific business as gambling?

- The image of the State Commission of Gambling rests on the results of the core functions of the Commission – the issuing of permits and the control activity.

The criteria for good image are high professionalism, integrity and transparency. This is the basis, and also -the good team, on which I fully count. One should never forget that gambling is a very sensitive area.

In principle the regulatory bodies related to gambling are open to public relations, inquiries, access to information. However, because of their specific functions they do not have a proactive media policy.

I think that the routine work and the obedience by the law contribute much more to the image of the Commission than campaigning. I often underline that gaming in Bulgaria is a legal business, it has a regulatory framework, the gaming operators are good tax payers, they take into account the requirements and regulations of the Commission and the gaming sector is sustainable.

How would you define the Bulgarian model of regulation of the business – conservative or more liberal?

- I believe it is liberal as it provides ample possibilities to organize gambling activities.

There is a set of documents and if the applicants meet the requirements of the Law on Gambling and the Decree on Documents for the Issue of Permits, the Commission cannot refuse to issue a permit. On one hand this is good, but on the other hand it is not so good because the Commission does not have sufficient GAMESPECTRUM september - october 2008 13 legal instruments to control the expansion of the gambling sector. We may only hope that the market will be self-regulated. For the moment this happens. Since the beginning of the year at least 15-20 companies terminated their activities before the expiration of the term of the permit. I think it will be good if the law becomes a bit more restrictive so as to secure a controlled growth of the gambling business. We should also note that in distinction from the supervisory bodies in other European countries the Bulgarian Commission has punitive functions too.

The regulation of an activity implies constant improvements in response to the new developments. What is pending in this direction?

- One of the amendments in the Law on Gambling refers to the social responsibility of the Commission – the Commission, its President included, have the right to restrict the access to the gaming halls of people who are at risk or dependent on gambling. In many countries serious amounts of money are allocated to address the issue of dependencies and groups at risk. We work on this problem actively with the professional organizations. The operators understand that this harms rather than helps their business.

The percentage of risk players in Bulgaria is small, but despite this the problem should not be overlooked because every risk player is potentially addicted. Many of the European regulatory bodies have the right to ban the access of some players to the playrooms, and these are not just the risk or the addicted ones, but also those who do not observe the rules or behave rudely and arrogantly. This refers not just to the gaming hall where the client behaved in such a way, but also to all other sites. If the order is violated administrative sanctions are imposed on the operators. We conducted a lot of inspections with respect to the SMS games, which are becoming very popular now. Several meetings took place with operators of such games. They got the point that the problem is serious, and together we found a solution to the advantage of all, that also protects the rights of all stakeholders.

The other amendments in the law are targeting the organizers of illegal gambling and Internet gambling, which has also become a global problem. It is envisaged to increase some of the fines, mostly with respect to the advertising of gambling activities.

Another problem is the impossibility to destruct gaming equipment. At the moment the State Commission on Gambling pays about 40 000 BGN a year for the rent of warehouses where more than 2000 confiscated items are stored. A big part of them have been submitted to the State Receivables Collection Agency, but as they cannot be certified they cannot be put in exploitation either. Thus a vicious circle is created. I believe we found a solution – the draft law on gambling provides that the operator who committed the violation covers all costs related to the storage of the confiscated equipment. I believe this will be a bigger deterrence factor than the confiscation itself.

Little is known about gaming in Bulgaria. There are no statistics or analytical information. Whose fault is this – of the business or the regulatory body?

- I am afraid I would not agree with you. Since 2002 the State Commission of Gambling has been publishing a monthly bulletin. There is sufficient information on the web site of the Commission, we respond to inquiries and questions, our experts provide consultations. As regards the business, I believe it has done a good job, because gaming is rather popular in Bulgaria. I think however that additional literature is also needed that can be of use to both the operators and the business as whole – the absence of specialized periodicals is not to the benefit of the sector and the stakeholders. As regards the statistical data about the market – the taxes paid by the gaming business for 2006 amount to 72 million BGN, and for 2007 - 86.5 million BGN.

It is a fact that the gaming business has paid more than the banks and the insurance companies together. If we assume that the turnover of Internet bets is 500 million BGN, we may conclude judging from the information submitted by the State Receivables Collection Agency that the turnovers of other bets is more or less equivalent. One should not ignore the social dimension however – employment is created for around 80 000 people.

To what extent does the Bulgarian regulation balance the interests of the state, the business and the society?

- At this stage I think there is a good balance between the interests of the state, the business and the society both in terms of fees for the opening of a site, and in terms of taxes paid afterwards. We can use also the experience of other countries but the national specifics are different and the automatic transfer of legislation to Bulgaria would harm rather than help the activity. I think that the draft of proposed changes to the Gaming law, which is under preparation, now will balance the interests even better.

In the past couple of years the Commission has been engaged in active international activities. What did your partners borrow from you, and what did you borrow from them?

- Since 2006 Bulgaria is a member of two international organizations – the Gaming Regulators European Forum /GREF/, and the International Association of Gaming Regulators / IAGR/. We are in good relations also with the Swiss regulatory body, the Commissions in Belgium, Sweden and Slovenia. We recently hosted a delegation from Spain. In Spain there is no uniform regulatory body – each province has one and the umbrella is the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Contacts were also established with the Ukrainian regulatory body, which regulates not only the gambling business but also all other businesses, which require permits. Next to this each of the regional administrations there has the right to issue permits. In Sweden there is monopoly in regulation. We expect to have fruitful cooperation with other representatives of the European countries, too. At the annual meeting of GRЕF a month ago when we discussed the internet bets with the colleagues I suggested that we also initiate a discussion about the position of the South Eastern European countries on this issue during the first Balkan Expo for the Entertainment and Gaming Industry that will take place in Sofia 30 September – 2 October 2008. The idea is that the same rules are observed in our countries with respect to Internet bets. My proposal was supported and at the moment the Bulgarian Commission has committed itself to prepare a draft on the core principles, which will be coordinated and discussed during the conference.