Daniel Welk is the Co-Founder of Hazaña Hotel Advisory and has over 28 years’ experience in the hospitality industry – having begun cleaning dishes at a restaurant at the age of 14. Originally from Australia, I have worked in Australia, the United Kingdom and have over 19 years’ experience in Asia, with tenure in Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, India and Singapore, across a variety of senior executive roles. Prior to launching Hazaña hotel advisory, I was the Vice President of Hilton’s portfolio of luxury and lifestyle properties for the Asia Pacific region, covering the Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, LXR Hotels & Resorts, and Canopy by Hilton brands. As the Asia Pacific luxury and lifestyle brand leader for Hilton, a position I held for almost 4 years, I was responsible for ensuring the portfolio of 29 hotels were market leaders, by partnering with the operations team to drive Rev PAR performance; bringing to life all brand initiatives; and enhancing and growing partnerships and loyalty throughout the region. During my tenure, I was directly involved and responsible for the launch of numerous world class assets, hotels such as Conrad Osaka, Waldorf Astoria Bangkok and the Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi. I was also responsible for bringing together the cross-functional partners at Hilton to ensure the existing pipeline of 20 hotels were to be launched successfully. In addition, I worked with the business development team to secure new deals. Prior to this role, I was the Vice President of Operations for India with Hilton, a role where I oversaw 15 trading hotels and resorts in the region as well as numerous projects in the active pre-opening stage. I was also the local representative Director for Hilton Management Services Pvt. Ltd and oversaw the administrative functions of Hilton’s business in India. Before taking charge of India in December 2013, I served as General Manager and was responsible for the overall leadership and asset management of the award-winning Hilton Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Prior to that, I launched the 506-room year-round mountain resort Hilton Niseko Village in Hokkaido, Japan, a destination that remains close to my heart and a resort I believe, is the snowiest resort on the planet. In my spare time, I like to spend time with my family, surf, snowboard and seek out new experiences across the globe.