Boasting over 35 years of experience in hospitality and asset management, David joined Quest as the Chief Operations Officer in July 2019 before being promoted to Managing Director of The Ascott Limited for Australia and New Zealand in February 2021.

David is responsible for overseeing Ascott’s managed operations throughout Australia and New Zealand, in addition to ongoing global leadership of business format franchise brand, Quest Apartment Hotels, which has over 170+ hotels throughout Australia, New Zealand and Fiji.

The Ascott Limited (Ascott) is a Singapore company that has grown to be one of the leading international lodging owner-operators. Ascott's portfolio spans over 200 cities across over 30 countries in Asia Pacific, Central Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the USA.

Ascott has more than 90,000 operating units and over 65,000 units under development, making a total of more than 150,000 units in over 900 properties.

The company’s serviced apartment, coliving and hotel brands include Ascott The Residence, The Crest Collection, Somerset, Quest, Citadines, lyf, Préférence, Vertu, Harris, Citadines Connect, Fox, Yello, Fox Lite and POP!. 

Previously, David worked in senior corporate and strategic management positions in various locations across Asia, the Middle East and the Pacific. He held senior leadership roles with InterContinental Hotels Group and Hyatt International, where he gained extensive experience in hotel and resort operations.

• These roles provided David with a broad range of experiences, and today his expertise spans operational capability and excellence, asset management, wealth creation, strategic alignment, concept development and cultural change.

David graduated from the University of Newcastle, Australia, with an MBA and is certified in Hotel Real Estate Investments and Asset Management from Cornell University and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).

He is currently the Chair for Accommodation Australia and an Advisory Board member for the Tourism and Transport Forum (Australia).

Awards

• Australasian Hotelier of the Year, HM awards - Hotel and Accommodation Excellence 2022
• Datoship awarded by the HRH Sultan of the State of Pahang, Malaysia, 2010
• Multiple Hyatt property awards for performance, service, and industrial accolades

Industry Associations and Boards

• Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) – Victoria
• Accommodation Australia
• Tourism and Transport Forum - Australia

Sean is a dynamic leader with extensive experience in the hospitality industry. During his career, he has managed market leading and award-winning hotels within Australia and Asia and is highly regarded as a driver of innovation, best practice and for generating owner returns.

As Area Vice President, Australia New Zealand, and Pacific (ANZP) for Marriott International Inc, Sean oversees and drives the operations and financial performance for more than 50 hotels, including operating and pipeline properties across the region.

Sean also leads the growth of Marriott International’s footprint in ANZP, developing brand awareness and guest experience across the company’s portfolio of 31 brands including Luxury, Premium and Lifestyle Hotels. Having introduced several new luxury and premium brands to the Australian market including the JW Marriott, The Luxury Collection, Ritz Carlton, W Hotels, AC by Marriott, Le Meridien, Element by Westin and Moxy.

With a passion for people, Sean drives a solid team culture through strong leadership across circa 10,000 Associates in Australia and the Pacific, and has mentored and developed talent at all levels throughout the Asia Pacific region. Sean has a sound business acumen and is well regarded in the industry for his established connections and owner relationships.

Bruce Copland is a professional company director and hotelier who has worked in the hotel, hospitality, tourism and related consulting business since 1969.  He has many years of accommodation hotel experience in the international arena spanning the United Kingdom, Europe, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Mexico, and for almost 40 years in Australia.

Bruce first migrated to Australia in 1986 to work for Western Resorts in WA as Group Development Manager. He has since held other senior group management positions with Quality Pacific, Country Comfort, Austotel and was CEO of Toga Hospitality until June 2007.  During his tenure at Toga both Vibe Hotels and Travelodge were coupled to the already successful Medina brand and the first Adina Hotels were opened in Europe.

Bruce continues to serve on boards within the TFE Hotels group as an independent non-executive Director.  Bruce is also a Director of McKenzie Scott & Associates, providing management consulting services to a wide variety of companies across Australia.

Bruce is the Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee overseeing all remuneration, accounting and compliance issues for the Association.

Norman is the Director of Hotels and Resorts for EVT, Australia’s largest and longest established Australian owned entertainment and hospitality company. The EVT hotel portfolio spans some 80 hotels under the QT, Rydges, Atura, Lylo and Independent Collection by EVT brands.  EVT also operates almost 150 restaurants and bars and has over 1500 conference and events spaces.

Norman’s career as a hotel and travel industry professional spans almost 40 years, with experience working throughout Australia and New Zealand. Prior to moving into corporate roles, Norman held General Manager positions in nine properties, including major city hotels as well as 2 years as General Manager of Australia’s largest integrated Resort. 

After graduating Hotel School in the UK in 1992, Atherton joined Hyatt International, where she spent 10 years with them starting at The Hyatt Carlton Tower in London then relocating to Australia to work at Park Hyatt Sydney and then moving to Melbourne as part of the pre-opening team of Park Hyatt Melbourne.

She then spent the next 10 years with Aman Resorts running their Balinese property Amankila.

Returning back to Australia in 2012 she successfully opened Hotel Hotel in Canberra and then followed this with 8 years as the Group General Manager of Jackalope Hotels.

Tracy is now Managing Director of a new hospitality development called Melbourne Place which is scheduled to open late 2023.

Ovolo Group is led by Chief Executive Officer – Dave Baswal. With over seven years of experience in the hospitality industry, previously acting as Managing Director, Chief Financial and Operations Officer for Ovolo AU/NZ, Dave's passion for the brand is palpable, supporting a smooth transition into CEO.

Amidst his time at Ovolo, Dave's ability to anticipate and effectively implement strategic partnerships has led to rapid growth in the Australian market, through initiatives for ethical consumerism and a vision for sustainability. With over 1,000 employees across two continents, Dave’s extensive knowledge exhibits his seamless communication and managerial skills in the group.

He has proven his talent in coordinating a platform for progressive thinking as an unequivocal market leader of the affirmed Ovolo Group. His ability to connect with individuals in their creative fields has proved instrumental, with Ovolo Hotels & Restaurants now almost doubling as an art gallery. He has recognised that Ovolo Group embodies the unique prospect of not only inspiring the hospitality industry but encouraging change in other sectors as well.

With proven experience in Asset Management, Acquisition and Growth, Brand and marketing, Revenue and Distribution, Hotel Operations, Design and Development, and Strategic Finance, Dave is confident in pushing for expansion in each sector. With a Master's in Professional Accounting and a Master's in International Tourism and Hospitality from Griffith University in Gold Coast, a member of CPA Australia, and a member of the Young Presidents Organisation in addition to a Bachelor in Hotel Management, Dave’s experiences have assisted him in developing his expertise.

The Lancemore Group is one of Australia’s preeminent Boutique and White Label Management Groups.  They operate seven iconic boutique hotels and three white label management hotels, with a few more in the pipeline.  Never a group to be boxed, the Lancemore Group also run a James Halliday 5* winery (Lindenderry Wines) and a facilities management division.

Lancemore properties regularly feature in best-of-the-best hotel lists.  Indeed, Lancemore is one of the most awarded hotel companies in Australia being represented strongly in Conde Nast Traveler Readers Awards, HM Awards, Gourmet Traveller Hotel Guide, Luxury Travel Gold List and Tripadvisor Top 25 hotels in Australia to name a few.  With a core strength in Food & Beverage, many of the Lancemore Group’s restaurants are critically acclaimed and are mainstay’s in the Australian Good Food Guide, whilst Lindenderry Wines is a multi-award winning winery and cellar door.

Julian has been CEO of Lancemore since 2008, when the group had just 3 hotels and none of the above awards.  In addition to his CEO role Julian is a current board member and past President of the Accommodation Association of Australia, Australia’s peak hotel industry body.  Julian has also been on the board of several State and National associations as has been a past board member of Melbourne Convention Bureau, Victorian Tourism Industry Council and the International Association of Conference Centres.  Julian was proud to be named Australasian Hotelier of the Year in the 2021 HM Awards.  Prior to his career at Lancemore, Julian held Strategy management roles at Westpac, Royal & Sun Alliance and Betfair.com.  Julian holds a BA/BComm from Melbourne University and Georgetown University.

Robert Dawson was appointed to his current role as General Manager, Park Hyatt Melbourne and Area Vice President in December 2009 and oversees the operations of the pacific hotels and related functions. Prior to taking up his appointment in Melbourne, Robert held senior management roles with Hyatt over the last 24 years in Perth, Johannesburg, Singapore & London managing a range of Hyatt brands.

Before joining Hyatt hotels, Robert who was educated in England held a number of positions in luxury hotels in Europe and the Caribbean.

Paul Hutton is Asia Pacific Area Vice President and Head of Australasia at Hilton. Based in Sydney, he oversees a diverse portfolio of 29 hotels with 16 hotels in the pipeline across Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.

As part of Hilton’s Asia Pacific Executive Committee, Paul leads Hilton’s expansion plans that focus on strategic and organic growth to place the right brands in the right locations with the right partners.

This marks a return to the Australasia region for Paul which he led from 2015 to 2017, before relocating to Singapore to take on the role of Head of Southeast Asia for Hilton, which he held for four years. During this time Paul oversaw 48 hotels across nine markets, with 41 hotels in the pipeline. He launched Hilton’s luxury Waldorf Astoria brand with its first hotel in Thailand and brought the focused service Hilton Garden Inn brand into Malaysia.

Paul is a seasoned industry veteran and has a long and illustrious history with Hilton. His 40-year career with the company started in Switzerland and since then he has worked across Eastern and Western Europe, Middle East, North Africa, UAE, China, South East Asia, and Australasia.

Born in Switzerland, Paul holds a Dip. Hotel Administration & Management from The GLION Institute & Hotel School, Switzerland. He is married with three daughters, is an active runner and hiker and enjoys quality family time as well as planning for the next holiday.

With a diverse background and more than 15 years in the hospitality industry with experience across corporate, leisure and remote destinations in Australia and New Zealand, Emma Hynes is a commercially astute, strategic, agile and savvy hotelier.

Emma’s current expanding portfolio as Regional Hotel General Manager at TFE Hotels encompasses over 30 properties across 6 brands throughout NSW & ACT.

Barry Robinson is the President and Managing Director, International Operations for Wyndham Destinations, a division of Travel + Leisure Co. In his role, he oversees the largest timeshare development operation outside of North America. Based in Singapore, Barry leads the company’s operations across Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Indonesia, China, Japan, Thailand, and the Philippines.

Barry is a driving force behind the international growth of Club Wyndham South Pacific and Club Wyndham Asia. His leadership was instrumental in the acquisition of Resort Frontier Co. Ltd, which has 16 properties in Japan. Under his stewardship, the asset portfolio of Wyndham Destinations Asia Pacific has exceeded AU$1 billion, with approximately 70 hotel and vacation club properties and some 3,000 employees. Additionally, Wyndham Destinations Asia Pacific serves as a preferred hotel management partner for Wyndham Hotels & Resorts in the Asia Pacific region.

He is President of the Asia Pacific Resort Development Organisation (APRDO), where he advocates for the timeshare industry in the region. He also serves as Vice President of the Australian Timeshare and Holiday Ownership Council (ATHOC).

Barry was recognised as Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2022 GNEX Vacation Industry Awards and Asia Pacific Hotelier of the Year award at the 2022 HM Awards.

Adrian Williams is Vice President Operations for Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania for the global hotel group AccorHotels. AccorHotels operates 52 hotels across these sates and have more than 3000 employees.

With over 20 years’ experience in the hospitality industry, Adrian has held various roles in hotels in multiple cities and states across Australia and Canada. He has been a passionate advocate for the industry with involvement in regional tourism and industry associations across all states of Australia. He is currently a board member of the Melbourne Convention Bureau and a member of the VTIC Accommodation Policy Committee.  

Adrian holds a Bachelor of Business (CHM) from Victoria University and Masters of Marketing.

Geoff is a career hotelier.  In mid-2017 he was a founding member of Crystalbrook Collection Hotels & Resorts, a multi award-winning hotel development and management company, with Australia's newest portfolio of distinctive upscale & sustainability focussed hotels.  Geoff was initially engaged as Group Director-Hotels before being appointed Chief Executive Officer in early 2019.

Originally from Melbourne, where he completed a Degree in Bachelor of Business majoring in Catering & Hotel Management, Geoff plays a key role driving the development of the Crystalbrook Collection.  There are now seven Crystalbrook hotels to date, close to 900 team members and a billion dollars of assets.  He is also responsible for future acquisitions, (a second Sydney hotel was announced in December 2022), the strategic growth plan and direction of the Group, as well as elevating Crystalbrook’s dedication to sustainability, under the ethos of Responsible Luxury.

Prior to Crystalbrook Collection, Geoff held key leadership positions in General Manager, Regional and corporate roles throughout Asia Pacific, originally with the Southern Pacific group and then Accor, Hilton International and Event Hospitality & Entertainment.  In 2012 he was recognised at the HM Awards for Excellence as General Manager of the Year Australia.

During his 38 year career he has held various hospitality related board positions and continues to be an advocate for the industry in its post COVID recovery.