Industry veteran André Lalande has joined URC as director of sales for the western United States and Canada.
Scott Srolis, previously URC regional sales manager, East Coast, has been promoted to director of sales for the eastern United States. Chris Discotto, previously URC sales representative in the Mid-Atlantic Region, has been promoted to Srolis’ former position of regional sales manager.
“These moves enable URC to deliver even better support to our dealers,” said Lars Granoe, URC vice president of sales. “Scott and Chris have worked tirelessly to move our brand forward, and their track record of success working with our dealers speaks for itself. André brings us unparalleled experience, knowledge and ability. With this upgraded sales team in place, we look forward to delivering additional dealer service and sales programs that will continue to foster our dealers’ business growth.”
Fluent in English and French, Lalande brings 18 years of technology and home automation industry experience to the company. He comes to URC from Lutron Electronics, where he served as residential solutions marketing director. From 2002 to 2008, Lalande served as director of marketing with Philips Consumer Electronics; he received the Philips North America President Award in 2005. From 1993 to 2002, he served as manager of advanced business solutions, focused on VoIP and home networking, for Nortel Networks. Lalande holds a MBA from McGill University in Montréal.
Srolis, who joined URC in 2009, has played a vital role in the sales growth of the company and the recent rollout of URC’s Total Control whole-house product line. He spent 1986 to 2009 as an electronics dealer himself with Bryn Mawr Stereo and its eventual parent, Tweeter. He was honored as Bryn Mawr’s 1997 Manager of the Year and Tweeter’s 2004 Regional Manager of the Year.
Active in the industry since 1994, Discotto joined URC in 2010 with previous managerial and sales experience at Best Buy, Apple and Tweeter. Discotto was chosen to run Tweeter’s concept flagship store, and also worked as district manager in Chicago for the company. As managing partner for Criteria in Las Vegas, he designed, sold, project-managed and programmed all custom jobs. His ample experience in selling technology to consumers allows him to understand the needs of the dealer at all levels. Discotto also serves as part of URC’s internal Alpha test team.
