Book Club with Todd Haushalter

Todd Haushalter, Chief Product Officer at Evolution Gaming, is a cult figure in the iGaming world, renowned for his creative thinking, endless energy for the subject and laser-sharp industry vision. A regular speaker at universities and global events, his keynote speeches have served as a catalyst and benchmark for many seeking inspiration and motivation. EBM discussed some key books in Todd’s library, to discover more about the thinking processes of this maverick, and how these books haves shaped his trajectory.

What do you look for in a book before you pick it up?

Almost everything I read is a recommendation from someone I admire. Warren Buffett said one of the best books he has ever read is Influence, and how much he learned about human psychology reading it, and I was immediately intrigued. I generally want to read books where I can emerge better after reading it, which means almost all fiction is out for me, though I hear I am missing out. My leisure reading is learning. I also run this mental exercise where I try to determine if the book’s subject matter requires this many pages. After all, there is only so much time in the day for reading and I don’t like long-winded writing.

There’s plenty of hype about business books that can help you to succeed, do you think that they work?

I’d guess they work as well as diet books help people lose weight. When you talk about changing human behaviour, it usually takes more than a few well written words. However, if you care enough about your diet, or becoming a better manager then you are probably well on your way already, and maybe the book will nudge you in the right direction.

I also think business books tend to work better on younger people who are still forming how they will interact in the business world. People are usually less impressionable as they get older.

Philosophy in business, how does this apply? Is it a trend, or has it always existed?

Well it is certainly talked about more now. Sometimes I hear companies talk about their mission and values and it seems like they aspire to do everything except grow and sell their product for a profit. Interestingly, it seems the companies that do the most good, are the biggest ones -- They create more jobs, pay more taxes, and can give back more. A company is just a group of people offering a service or product that is of value to others, and that by itself is noble. Capitalism is brutal, so if you don’t do a good job, the marketplace votes you into bankruptcy. For this reason I think almost all businesses since the beginning of time have had a similar philosophy – offer as good of a product as we can at a fair price. Maybe companies don’t say this so explicitly, but it is surely what they do every day, and it is what they talk about in most of their meetings.

Steve Jobs encouraged creativity and gave a lot of creative freedom to people who worked for him. What’s your take on that, and what other leadership philosophies do you share with him? Steve made a religion out of product excellence and I love that! Sometimes in meetings I will ask “What would Steve Jobs say if he were here in this meeting, sitting in that chair right now?” then I will ask someone to assume the role of Steve. Inevitably they will be more critical than normal and this works well because then I don’t have to say it. We all want to be like him, but where the rubber meets the road, it means an agonising attention to detail, pushing out deadlines or running over budget, and being hyper-critical of your own work, which most people are not willing to do. I am comfortable with all of this, but I also work with others who feel the same, and you can’t be alone in thinking this way or it won’t work. I also admire how he looked for the product that nobody was asking for but knew they wanted. This requires incredible conviction and it means creating a culture where ideas are celebrated. This is something I try hard to do.

Freakonomics - does it work?

Freakonomics is a study of how people react to incentives, we are all incredibly sensitive to both positive and negative incentives. Raise the penalty for drinking and driving to a year mandatory prison sentence, and watch the demand for taxis skyrocket. Legalise the same behaviour and traffic fatalities will surge. This book literally made me a better thinker. The book offered so many fresh perspectives and supporting data on the power of incentives, and after reading it I felt like I could see the world just a little bit more clearly. So, yes it definitely works.

Jack Welch attributes 75% of his success to the team he built, and how carefully he built it, how much of his vision do you share? Only 75%? It is always about the team. No matter how capable or visionary the leader is, most of the real value is in execution not ideation. And to execute well, you need a great team and they have to work well as a team too, not just be a collection of individual contributors. They need to avoid politics, help each other, be critical and not be offended by criticism, and they need to communicate well. Big things can’t be achieved by individuals. Even Elon Musk has almost 10,000 people working at SpaceX, and if they are not a great team then rockets explode.

I have met several people in senior business positions who attribute their achievements to their ability to understand people and what they want. Do you think it is possible to teach that - for example with the help of books like ‘Influence’, or is it a question of - you either have it or you don’t.

We aren’t talking about dunking a basketball here; you can definitely learn the art of motivating others. Everyone has different talents and I think when people say it can’t be taught, it is usually just a way of them saying the skill they already have is very rare and special. But if you asked those people, “do you think you can learn to write code or fly a jet”, they would quickly say “yes”. Most skills can be learned, it is just a matter of how much effort is required, but still I’d avoid buying a book on how to dunk a basketball.

Out of the titles mentioned here, which one would you recommend the most (not counting casino books) and why?

Freakonomics. I know people have shorter attention spans these days and this book is so interesting and tightly written. It also covers such a wide range of subjects from how to get people in the office to voluntarily put money into the coffee fund jar, to why grade school teachers cheated for their students on standardised tests. Each chapter is a new adventure and after you read it, you will see the world just a little more clearly, I bet!