Executive boardroom overlooking a city skyline at night

About Waystone

Built by operators, for owners.

Waystone Group is an independent hospitality management, asset management and advisory firm. We work across hotels, resorts, serviced apartments, mixed-use accommodation and tourism developments in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.

Our Story

The gap we set out to close.

Waystone was established because owners were being asked to choose between two imperfect options: large operators whose interests sit with the brand, or advisory firms who produce reports but have never carried operational accountability.

Our founders had spent their careers on the other side of that equation — running hotels, negotiating management agreements, repositioning underperforming assets and answering to owners for the numbers. They built Waystone to bring that executive capability directly to owners, investors and developers.

Our senior team combines operating, commercial, development and finance experience. This allows Waystone to test a project against operating reality, support delivery before opening and remain accountable once the asset begins trading.

Executive meeting room overlooking a city

Independent by design

Operating reality, commercial discipline and owner alignment in one senior team.

Our Mission

To protect and grow the value of every hospitality asset we touch through commercially disciplined, executive-led management and advice.

Our Vision

To be the independent management and advisory partner of choice for hospitality owners, investors and developers across Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.

Our Values

Four commitments we hold to on every mandate.

Commercial

Every recommendation is underwritten and tested against owner returns.

Independent

No brands, no proprietary capital, no conflicts — only the asset's interest.

Accountable

Senior leaders own the outcome from first meeting to final result.

Operationally grounded

Advice built on running hotels, carrying P&L and delivering results.

Leadership Team

Senior executives on every mandate.

Waystone is led by a team of hospitality operators, commercial advisors and finance executives — not a bench of analysts.

Patrick Laybutt, MBA

Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder

Patrick is an executive hotelier with more than 20 years of operating and commercial leadership across Australia, New Zealand and the broader Asia-Pacific region. His experience includes multi-property operational leadership, hotel openings, commercial strategy, operator negotiations, asset performance and direct P&L accountability. He has held senior roles including Chief Operating Officer and regional Vice President.

At Waystone, Patrick leads hotel management, operational advisory, operator strategy and performance-improvement mandates.

Rami Hussein

Executive Director & Co-Founder

Rami brings more than 10 years of commercial and business-building experience across hospitality and property. He works with owners and developers on acquisitions, project positioning, investment structures, transactions and the delivery of hospitality assets.

At Waystone, Rami leads development advisory, transaction support, stakeholder engagement and investor relationships.

Kiran Dhavala, CPA

Chief Financial Officer

Kiran is a CPA-qualified finance executive with more than 25 years of experience in financial management, governance and commercial oversight. His hospitality experience includes budgeting, forecasting, management reporting, owner reporting, controls and financial stewardship across multi-property portfolios.

At Waystone, Kiran leads financial analysis, underwriting, governance and reporting disciplines across advisory and management engagements.

Why Waystone

Operators first. Advisors second.

Executive operators, not career consultants

Our team has run hotels, carried P&L accountability and delivered results — not just written about them.

Independent advice with no brand conflicts

We hold no operating brands and no proprietary capital. Our recommendation is the one the asset needs.

Commercially driven decision making

Every position is underwritten. If it does not improve returns or protect value, we do not recommend it.

Regional hospitality expertise

Coverage across metropolitan, regional and resort markets in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.

End-to-end support from acquisition through operations

One team across feasibility, transaction, development, opening and ongoing performance.

Tailored solutions rather than off-the-shelf reports

Work is scoped to the asset and the owner's objectives — no templated deliverables.

Let’s talk about your asset.

Whether you’re acquiring, repositioning or operating a hotel, our team is ready to help.

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