After conducting a relatively short executive search, the Home Technology Specialists of America (HTSA) announced that it has selected Shaun Schuetz to fill the role of Managing Director of the industry buying group. The group also noted that it was expanding the leadership structure of the organization, including a promotion from within and another new addition to the team.
Learn more about the leadership changes at HTSA…
Back in July, Strata-gee told you about HTSA announcing the departure of long-time leader Jon Robbins. Why Robbins was leaving was never revealed by the organization, but the announcement noted that he was definitely not retiring.
On Wednesday, the organization announced that it has appointed Shaun Schuetz as Managing Director, effective today, October 1, 2026. In addition to Shaun’s appointment, we also learned that Ellie Doherty, formerly of DMF Lighting, has joined the group in a new role as Director of Member and Vendor Relations. HTSA calls this position “a new leadership role” in its announcement.
An Expansion of Leadership at HTSA
Finally, long-time employee Jordan Fuchs will see his leadership role expand as well, according to the announcement. However, just what that expansion represents is not revealed. The release notes that the expansion of his role reflects “the increasingly important part he plays in the organization’s day-to-day operations and continued development.”
Of Fuchs, the announcement adds: “His broader responsibilities recognize both the value of his contributions today and the Board’s confidence in his ability to take on greater responsibility and play an even more integral role in HTSA’s leadership as the organization moves forward.” I’m not sure what that means, but hopefully, Fuchs does.
About More Than Filling a Position
The group also announced the addition of Ellie Doherty in a new role, called Director of Member and Vendor Relations. Ellie Doherty, incidentally, is Tom Doherty’s daughter. Tom is HTSA’s Director of New Technology Initiatives. The group says that Ellie’s role represents an “expanded focus on HTSA’s relationships and success across its member and vendor communities.” The group says she possesses more than 10 years of experience in the custom integration and lighting industries.
This is about more than filling a position. The Board set out to build the leadership team HTSA needs for its next chapter while preserving the culture, relationships, and momentum that make this organization successful. Shaun, Ellie, and Jordan give HTSA that team, and the capacity to serve our members and vendor partners at a higher level.
Alex Lelchuk HTSA President of the Board of Directors
Schuetz to be Managing Director Today, Executive Director in January
As mentioned above, Schuetz joins HTSA as Managing Director today. According to the official release, he will hold this role until January 1, 2026, when he will then be promoted to Executive Director. This is probably a necessary watusi to work around the end of Robbins’ contract.
Schuetz has a long and rather eclectic career. Since the HTSA release failed to give any historical information on the companies where Schuetz worked, I turned to his LinkedIn profile. Here, in a condensed format, is his work history…
- Bally Total Fitness – 1 year (8/2001 – 8/2002) – General Manager
- Cintas – 7 months (8/2002-2/2003) – Facility Services Sales Manager
- CompUSA – 1 year (3/2003-2/2004) – Sales Associate, Sales Manager
- Best Buy – 2 1/2 years (2/2004-8/2006) – Sales Manager
- Best Buy for Business – 2+ years (8/2006-10/2008) – Business Account Executive
- Best Buy – 4 years (11/2008-10/2012) – Customer Solutions Manager, Magnolia Brand Manager, General Manager (Magnolia Audio/Video)
- AudioQuest – 10+ years (10/2012-12/2022) – Regional Sales Manager, Asia/Pacific; Regional Sales Manager, Latin America and North Central US; Vice President of Sales, Americas; Chief Sales Officer
- Masimo Consumer – 2 years, 10 months (1/2023-10/2025) – Senior Director of Global Commercial Strategy & GTM, Marantz & Classé; Vice President, Global Commercial Strategy; Vice President, ESS Channels, America
- Harman – 6 months (10/2025-3/2026) – Vice President of Sales, Best Buy
- BlueConnect Partners – since July 2026 – Senior Consultant
A Sales-Heavy Background
Schuetz’ background is heavy on sales and sales management. It is interesting to note that there does not appear to be any dealer group experience – either from the dealer side or the vendor side. One other interesting thing I noted is that Schuetz has updated his LinkedIn profile to add his new role at HTSA. However, he did not change his BlueConnect entry, which lists his time there as “July 2026 – present.” This could be an oversight, or perhaps he still retains his role at BlueConnect.
HTSA’s strength is its members and the vendor partners who invest in them. My priority is to listen first, build on the relationships that make this community successful, and make sure HTSA continues to deliver clear value on both sides of that partnership. Together, we can build on the strength of those partnerships to push beyond where we are today and be a force for what’s next.
Shaun Schuetz
To learn more about HTSA, be sure to visit htsa.com.
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