Wale will take over from Roeland Vos as boss of the Europe, Africa and Middle East region on June 1, 2013.
Wale has been with Starwood for 35 years and his most recent role has been as senior vice president and director of operations for western Europe.
Vos, who joined Starwood in 1982, has been in his current role since 2001 and will take a consulting role with the company from June.