EVT's Lauren Maunder Named 2026 Rising Star Asia Pacific at HICAP

Lauren Maunder, Financial Operations Controller at EVT Hotels & Resorts, received the 2026 Rising Star Award Asia Pacific on 22 October at the 36th HICAP (Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific) in Singapore.

The International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC), which runs the award jointly with HICAP, rewards emerging leaders showing professional growth and regional impact. Maunder's path to the podium began at the bottom of the hotel P&L. She joined EVT in 2010 as a Food & Beverage Attendant at Rydges North Sydney.

How fast did she climb?

Fast, by any controller's measure. She moved through hotel operations and night audit into finance. At 25 she held the Financial Controller title. By 30 she oversaw financial operations across EVT's QT Hotels & Resorts portfolio.

Today she runs financial operations for EVT's Luxury & Urban division. The remit covers owner relations, investment feasibility, ownership transitions and finance capability development — the unglamorous machinery that determines whether an asset performs after the deal closes.

She has worked through complex ownership transitions, property onboarding and brand changes, building the financial controls and reporting frameworks that support long-term asset performance. She also trains and mentors the next cohort of hospitality finance staff across the EVT portfolio.

What did the nominator say?

Jason Kelly, Group Financial Controller at EVT Hotels & Resorts, nominated her. He credited her combination of rigorous financial analysis, operational understanding and owner relationships.

"Lauren is one of the most capable and complete hospitality finance professionals I have worked with," Kelly said. "She leads with clarity, generosity, and composure, combining rigorous financial analysis with a deep understanding of hotel operations."

Maunder, in turn, credited the company culture that trusted her progression.

"My passion for this dynamic industry began on the front line, and I owe so much to the mentors and leaders at EVT who backed me at every step since," she said. "I'm so excited to do the same for the people coming up behind me."

Andrea Belfanti, CEO of ISHC, said Maunder exemplifies the next generation of hospitality investment leadership in Asia Pacific. Jonathon S. Zink, COO of the Hotel Investment Group by Northstar, called her "exactly the kind of talent our industry needs" and praised her ability to turn numbers into decisions that move a business forward.

Who qualifies for the award?

ISHC launched the Rising Star Award Asia in 2014 with HICAP. Nominees must be 35 or younger, live and work in Asia, and work in hospitality development or investment. Past recipients include:

• Karan Mahesh (2025)
• Stella Blythe (2024)
• Vicky Jian (2023)
• Calvin Li (2022)
• Siddhant Jhunjhunwala (2021)
• Corey Hamabata (2020)
• Daniel Yip (2019)
• Kieran Bestall (2018)
• Peter Harper (2017)
• Kiichi Mashita (2016)
• Nihat Ercan (2015)
• Christopher Hur (2014)

ISHC counts more than 250 members across six continents, covering over fifty functional areas, with candidates vetted for integrity and experience before admission.

The award signals where hotel investment leadership in the region is heading: toward finance professionals who grew up in operations rather than arriving from banking. Maunder's next task is scaling that dual fluency across EVT's portfolio through the training programs she now runs.