Women Of The C-Suite: Jamie Brown, Jane Nguyen and Jess Chambers Of Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races On The Five Things You Need To Succeed As A Senior Executive

An Interview With Sara Connell

Work is all about making connections and building relationships. It is amazing how many people know someone you have worked with in the past. I got my job with Penn National Gaming through a colleague that I had in Mississippi. Never burn a bridge, as you never ever know who will be your boss one day!

As a part of our interview series called “Women Of The C-Suite” , we had the pleasure of interviewing Jamie Brown, Jane Nguyen and Jess Chambers, a trio of female executives at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races Charles Town, WV. each with 20 years in their respective fields.

Jamie Brown, VP Marketing, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races.

Jamie Brown is the vice president of marketing at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races, with two decades in the gaming industry, all with major companies. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling and attending concerts (again!), posting pictures of her 5 lb. dog on Instagram, and all of the local nature and wineries. Having always prided herself on being a people developer, she finds mentoring others the most rewarding part of her job.

Jane Nguyen, VP Human Resources, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races.

Jane Nguyen is the vice president of human resources at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races, with previous positions at companies including Target, Macy’s, and CVS Health. She has four children, ages 9 to 15. Jane always strives to make a difference in team members’ lives and help them see their potential.

Jess Chambers, VP Hospitality, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races.

Jess Chambers is the vice president of hospitality at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races. She worked her way up at Charles Town from sous chef, having also served as chef de cuisine, assistant executive chef, and director of food and beverage. To help her make the shift from the kitchen to the executive offices, she earned a business degree, and became certified in organizational leadership, specifically high-performance leadership and the business strategies of achieving competitive advantage and measuring and improving business performance.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

Jamie Brown, VP Marketing, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races:

I grew up in St. Louis, Mo. and visited a casino in the area with my grandma and my mom on my 21st birthday. I started the following week in food and beverage as a part time job! I finished my undergrad in Economics from UMSL and eventually received my master’s in Marketing from Webster University, all while moving up the rungs of the ladder at the casino. Twenty years later, it’s still fun every day and I love it.

Jane Nguyen, VP Human Resources, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races:

I grew up most of my life in New Jersey as a first generation in the U.S. My parents came from Vietnam to live “The American Dream.” When I feel like I can’t achieve something, I think about my dad coming to the United States to find a better life. He didn’t speak the language and arrived in America with one small bag of clothes and a few photographs, but worked hard at multiple jobs to raise a family and eventually own his own business by never giving up. During my studies at Rutgers University, I was focused on getting my business degree, which led me to the start of my career in Human Resources with a wonderful mentor. Twenty years later, I have not left the field.

Jess Chambers, VP Hospitality, Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races:

I am actually a chef by trade. Always wanted to be for as long as I can remember. My parents had relocated to Mississippi while I was in culinary school and I knew they were close to casinos, which I figured would be a good way to kick off my career. So, I packed up and gave it a shot after I graduated — twenty years later and I’m still here!

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?

Jess Chambers

I had just moved to Mississippi and got an interview at the casino. Like many new grads, I was ready to take on the world! I went into the interview with the executive chef hopeful and eager to rattle off all of my knowledge, only for him to look at me and say “You are too pretty to be a chef. We will need to see if there is a position in the front-of-house for you.” I was gobsmacked, but I needed a job and was willing to entertain another opportunity. The director came in and ultimately hired me as a supervisor in one of their lounges. Again, not what I imagined, but I was still able to use some of the skills I learned in my hospitality classes. Imagine my shock when I showed up for the new hire orientation a few days later only to be told that I was too young to have the job I had been offered. I won’t lie, this had me a bit panicked. Ultimately, they made me an assistant until I was old enough to move into the supervisor position I was hired to do. I was the worst assistant EVER. I think I overflowed the coffee maker four times on my first day while attempting to keep the pot full as instructed.

I learned a lot from that situation. I made some of the best connections in that position and learned a lot of administrative functions that I would probably never have been exposed to. The biggest lesson that I took away is that the casino business is unpredictable in really great ways, and you have to be able to pivot and roll with the punches and take advantage of every opportunity you get, no matter how big or small it seems to be at the time.

I’m an author and I believe that books have the power to change lives. Do you have a book in your life that impacted you and inspired you to be an effective leader? Can you share a story?

Jane Nguyen

“Good to Great” by Jim Collins is a great book to give you another perspective on how to think about being a leader of an organization. The book reminds us that success starts with having the right leader and surrounding ourselves with the right team to drive the right culture that teams want to work in.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

Jamie Brown

Early in my career, I was working as an individual contributor, not looking far enough ahead to consider what I wanted to do next. The VP of hospitality asked me to apply to manage a very large department. It was nothing like the roles I had been doing and, in my mind, a huge stretch of my ability. I applied and was chosen for the job. A few months into the position, I asked him why he had asked me to take on this role and he told me that he knew I was a leader — and that he believed in me before I believed in myself. Sometimes it takes someone to push you outside of your comfort zone. I learned more about management and leadership in that role than any other I’ve had. To this day, he is my mentor and close friend.

As you know, the United States is facing a very important self-reckoning about race, diversity, equality and inclusion. This may be obvious to you, but it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you articulate to our readers a few reasons why it is so important for a business or organization to have a diverse executive team?

Jane Nguyen

Diversity allows us to challenge our mindset when we make decisions by hearing different perspectives and experiences.

As a business leader, can you please share a few steps we must take to truly create an inclusive, representative, and equitable society? Kindly share a story or example for each.

Jane Nguyen

Diversifying our workforce and setting our teams up for success are two steps that are important to create an inclusive, representative, and equitable society.

When we recruit for senior level positions, we need to make sure we are thoughtful of who is on our slate and that we have candidates with different backgrounds. More importantly, when this is the culture of your organization, it will not feel like a checklist item. Instead, it just becomes a part of what we do. Creating that equitable workplace takes the whole team.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by women executives that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

Jess Chambers

As a female, we have to work extra hard at the office to prove ourselves and sometimes that time spent at work means forfeiting time at home.

I think it is hard to feel like a successful executive and successful mother at the same time. Not saying that you can’t do it, but sometimes it feels like you are not giving 100% to both causes. I have missed many school plays, sporting events, and other important milestones along the way and that is a heavy weight to bear. Fortunately, my children are my biggest cheerleaders and understand that we will probably never celebrate a holiday on the exact date it falls, but we have learned to make celebrations special in our own way.

What is the most striking difference between your actual job and how you thought the job would be?

Jamie Brown

Relationships are key in this job and at all executive levels. While it is important to understand how to generate demand, it is equally important to understand the importance of relationships. The bonds built with your team, peers, and counterparts inside and outside of the company are how the work gets done.

What advice would you give to other leaders to help their team to thrive?

Jess Chambers

Don’t ever forget where you came from. Always stay humble and authentic, it goes a really long way with the team that you are trying to lead. People need to know that they can come to you with real life issues and that you have sympathy or empathy for what they might be going through.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)

Jamie Brown

1- Do what you love and love what you do. I have a picture in my office with this statement. You always hear that if you do what you love, you’ll never “work” a day in your life. I believe this is so true, as I hear from others who are truly unhappy in their chosen career. You must find something you’re passionate about doing — or it will seem like a lot of hours without purpose.

2- Hire the people with the best attitude. Teach the skills. I’d rather have an upbeat, driven person without a lot of experience on my team any day than a person with a lot of skills and a poor attitude. Making work as fun as possible also makes it enjoyable for those on your team and improves morale and retention.

3- Trust makes a team. Trust the people working with you and it’s much easier to function as a team striving for the same goals.

4- Resilience and tenacity are more important than you know. Throughout my career, like many people, I’ve had amazing leaders to learn from, and those that model how not to manage. My dad has always told me to never let anyone see me sweat — and to me, this means always keeping a level head and to keep persevering toward the goal. Always stay resilient through it all. Tenacity can help guide you when you’re in the face of a challenge, more than any other skill. I’ve found resilience and tenacity to be crucial to achieving any goal I have.

5- It took me a longer time than others to learn that you must have balance in your life with work and home. Resolve issues quickly so that they don’t erode either side of the balance and enjoy every minute of your time, wherever you are, as best you possibly can.

Jane Nguyen

1- Surround yourself with people that are smarter than you. I’ve always learned to bring people on your team with knowledge that you may not have or perspectives you may not see. This allows the team to challenge each other’s thoughts.

2- Culture is an everyday thing! Culture is not a pizza party. It is something you live and breathe every day.

3- Work/life balance is not 50/50. It’s about knowing when you need to lean more in the work or life space. Plan your life and then plan your work. This will allow you to maximize both sides of your life to their fullest potential.

4- Don’t sweat the small things. Keep focus on the big picture and end goal.

5- Take care of yourself: mentally, physically, emotionally. It’s important to take time for yourself and ensure you’re in the right head space when making business decisions. This requires a full night’s rest, eating right, and staying active.

Jess Chambers

1- Work is all about making connections and building relationships. It is amazing how many people know someone you have worked with in the past. I got my job with Penn National Gaming through a colleague that I had in Mississippi. Never burn a bridge, as you never ever know who will be your boss one day!

2- Your career can’t be the only part of who you are. I spent the first 10 years of my career as a one-trick pony. ALL of my friends were people I worked with and we had nothing to talk about other than work. I was the boring person in a social setting! Over the years I have learned that work/life balance is more than just a buzz phrase. It is a necessity for your personal well-being!

3- You learn just as much from bad leaders as you do from great ones. Find the lesson in everything and add the “to do’s” AND “not to do’s” to your leadership toolbox. I have had my share of amazing leaders that truly inspired me, but when I say I have had some terrible ones I mean it. Every time one of those leaders made me feel undervalued, I would file it away and tell myself that I would never do that to a person on my team.

4- Don’t take yourself so seriously; the show will go on. In late 2020, I got COVID and my number one concern was leaving my team alone for an unplanned period of time. Wouldn’t you know they all stepped up, held down the fort, and were amazing in my absence. No one person should make or break your operation. Put faith in your team.

5- You will NEVER know what to expect. The casino business is beautifully creative and chaotic and if you are the type of person who wants to know what they will be doing every single day, it might not be for you. I keep a massive to-do list on my desk at all times, but every single day brings the unexpected and I find myself pivoting and reprioritizing those tasks. You must keep your head on a swivel and roll with it!

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.