The week in industry hires and promotions: April 27-May 1

Who got hired or promoted this week? Here’s our weekly rundown, in chronological order.

Monday, April 27

Former LinkedIn and Yahoo! engineer Lawrence Yuan was named senior director of engineering for Auction.com. “User experience has always been a top priority for Auction.com in our mission to make online real estate transactions as easy, transparent and secure as possible for an audience that is becoming increasingly mobile,” said Auction.com chief technology officer Ravi Keswani in a statement. “With his proven track record of developing tools and processes that help companies more effectively interact with their customers, we are pleased to welcome Lawrence Yuan as a valuable addition to our team.”

Bob Hafer joined HomesUSA.com as vice president of business development. “Bob was a natural choice for this position; his vast knowledge and national presence will help propel HomesUSA.com to the next level,” said HomesUSA.com president and CEO Ben Caballero in a statement. Hafer will oversee client development and sales strategies with an eye toward increasing growth in Texas and leading HomesUSA.com’s nationwide expansion.

Management consulting firm Cornerstone Advisors had a multitude of Monday morning announcements, headed by the news that Ron Shevlin had joined Cornerstone as director of research. “Ron Shevlin is recognized industrywide for his leadership and pioneering research,” said Scott Sommer, Cornerstone Advisors president and chief executive officer, in a statement.

Shevlin was one of several Cornerstone hires and promotions announced on Monday. Michael Carson was named the senior director of the technology solutions practice at Cornerstone; Brandi Gregory joined the contract negotiation Cornerstone practice as a director; Ryan Myers joined the performance solutions practice as a director; Elie Goodman came aboard as Cornerstone’s director of marketing; Shannon Jayne and Tristan Green started as new analysts; Daryl Jones was promoted to a director position; and Ryan Brogan was promoted to consultant.

Tuesday, April 28

Jason Nierman was named head of business development for Agent Ace, a Santa Monica-based startup that uses data to match buyers and sellers with agents. He came to Agent Ace after serving as the vice president of partner development at TrueCar, Inc.

HAP Investments announced that Doni Blumenthal was appointed as a financial analyst at the company. “We are very pleased to have Doni join HAP as an Analyst,” said Eran Polack, co-founder and CEO of HAP Investments, in a statement. “He has great experience in the financial services industry and we believe his analytical skills and background will play a key part in helping the company reach its future goals.”

John Nichols, a former football coach and professional athlete, joined Kathy Toth & Team of Keller Williams as a buyer specialist. “John is an enthusiastic Realtor who knows our area well,” said CEO Kathy Toth in a statement. “His perception, people skills and tenacity are a tremendous asset to our homebuyer clients. He’s a great fit for our team, and I’m proud to have him on board.”

Wednesday, April 29

Richard Andrew Arculin, former senior counsel at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) office of regulations, joined Venable as counsel in the firm’s Washington, DC, office. “Venable is well known for its focus on issues consumer protection issues before the CFPB and other government agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission,” said Arculin in a statement. “I look forward to applying my CFPB experience to further expand and enhance the firm’s recognized consumer financial services practice.”

Thursday, April 30

LenderLive Network, which provides end-to-end mortgage services, announced that Mark Litzel joined the firm as vice president of national sales for LenderLive‘s settlement services division. “We know our customers are concerned about the impact upcoming regulations will have on their budgets, workflow and how settlement service providers will address, which is why we are investing in seasoned mortgage professionals to help better serve their needs,” said Joe Mowery, president of Settlement Services. “Mark’s extensive knowledge of the mortgage industry, as well as his proven sales capabilities, will make him an excellent addition to LenderLive and help us grow our business, while also providing superior service to our customers.”

Webb Sellers joined SRS Real Estate Partners (SRS) as first vice president in the San Antonio office. “We are grateful to have Webb leading our efforts in San Antonio,” said Will Majors, senior vice president and market leader for the Austin and San Antonio offices. “He has the depth of experience and knowledge to help broaden SRS’ presence in that market.”

The Brentwood office of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties added Vahn Alexander to its team as a Realtor. “Given his extensive career as an attorney, Vahn is not only a hard worker, but also a proven professional and a skilled negotiator, which will serve him very well in this industry,” said Tim Swan, Brentwood branch manager, in a statement.

Matthew Morris joined Douglas Elliman Real Estate as part of the Luis D. Ortiz Team. “Given my strong network of contacts from the United Arab Emirates to Russia and China, it was important to me that I joined a real estate firm in New York that would be able to provide me with in depth market knowledge and premier listings. Douglas Elliman is that company,” said Morris in a statement.

Redfin announced that Bridget Frey has been promoted from senior vice president of engineering to chief technology officer. “Bridget is one of Redfin’s deepest thinkers,” said Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman in a satement. “She digs into the code, analyzes the logs, quietly delivers breathtaking strategic insights, re-imagines our systems architecture, wonders how to automate everything, figures out the simplest way to get anything done, and makes everyone around her better. She’s a pragmatist, a strategist, an optimist and, above all, a believer in Redfin’s mission to make real estate better for regular folks.”

Amy Somerville is the new vice president of education and training at Re/Max University. She was promoted from her position at Re/Max University as executive director of education. “Amy’s extensive involvement with our many education programs makes her the perfect candidate to lead RU into the future,” said Mike Ryan, Re/Max’s executive vice president, in a statement. “Her experience with the Re/Max network and her relationships with our brokers and agents give her a solid foundation to build upon as we develop new strategies for training our affiliates around the world.”

Email hiring announcements to press@inman.com.