Case Study: Pechanga Resort Casino achieves a pay-for-performance culture and empowered managers with Saba

Train supervisors and managers when communicating performance metrics

Pechanga Resort Casino, a 4,500‑employee hospitality business in Temecula, California, faced a major culture shift when it moved from a seniority‑based pay system to pay‑for‑performance. Employees were accustomed to automatic annual raises and managers had little experience differentiating or communicating performance, creating the risk of confusion and resistance.

Pechanga trained frontline managers extensively, codified core competencies with a five‑point rating scale, held employee roundtables, and rolled out Halogen performance software to evaluate staff in coordinated cycles. The program produced strong buy‑in—an internal survey showed 92% positive responses—and by the third cycle the performance‑based pay system was fully embedded, with ongoing manager coaching and iterative improvements driving better feedback and more accurate pay decisions.

Pechanga Resort Casino

Tony Chartrand

Vice President of Human Resources and Talent Management