Wes's Weekly Wisdom Archives

What AI can’t replace… I attended a users group meeting for an AMS company this week, and you won’t be surprised to hear that AI was the dominant topic. From the keynote speakers, to the breakout sessions, to the conversations in the halls and at lunch, it was “all-AI, all the time.” But I was […]

Don’t do that… One of my very favorite pieces of advice to give clients is “Don’t do that.” Client: “We’re going to migrate all of our current data into the new system.” Me: “Don’t do that.” Client: “In order to learn more about our members, we’re going to ask a dozen questions on the membership […]

A harsh truth about your members… Just over 20 years ago, the book “He’s Just Not That Into You” was published, and later turned into a movie (stick with me, I’m going somewhere with this). Per Wikipedia: “The premise of the book, as stated in the title, tells women readers that if a man in whom […]

Should you chug or sip? I was recently meeting with two staff at a client of mine. They had been reviewing references for an AMS they are considering, and one staff person said, “Their references are so strong it feels like a cult. I’m not sure I’m ready to drink the Kool-Aid.” The other staffer […]

Why bother with a consultant when I have AI? As AI becomes increasingly powerful, the value of using an AMS selection consultant (and many other types of consultants!) starts to come into question. After all, with very well-constructed prompts and responses, an association could develop a very solid needs analysis and RFP that could be used to […]

Guardrails can be helpful! When selecting a new AMS, I find my clients are often very tempted by custom software or “platform” systems (e.g., built on Salesforce or MS Dynamics) because these systems are infinitely configurable. After all, if I can make the system do anything I want, that’s a good thing, right? Well, maybe. In […]

“If you knew this information, what might you do differently?” I had a conversation with a client recently about developing KPIs, reports, and queries from their forthcoming data warehouse. My client said: “We have a ton of requests for KPIs and reports. How do we determine which to focus on first?” My response: “When someone requests a dashboard […]

Showing is not teaching In my experience, when new staff members are taught how to use their AMS (or LMS, CMS, FMS, etc.) they aren’t really taught how to use the system, they are shown how to use it. So what’s the difference? In a nutshell, showing only covers the “how” and “what.” But teaching […]

Who own the AMS company is like the weather… When I work with clients to find a new AMS, one of the most common questions I get is: “Is the software company owned by private equity or is it privately owned?” While I think this is a legitimate question to ask and have answered, it […]

“As good or better than me.” I was recently speaking with a software developer working on AI and we were discussing using natural language querying in an AMS. I told him, “The biggest challenge you face is that the first time the AI is wrong, staff will never use it again.” He agreed but then added: “The […]

Documentation is insurance In a conversation with a client about their data management needs, the client pointed out that if they lost one or two key staff members, so much institutional knowledge would go with them that the association would have real difficulty managing their AMS. I recommended that they should document all of their key processes so […]

It all comes down to fundamentals I’m preparing for a webinar that I’m presenting in a couple of weeks, on using data to improve marketing and communications. This is a presentation (in one form or another) that I’ve made for nearly 20 years, and it includes an excellent case study of one association that dramatically improved their […]

Blog post themes over 20 years… I’ve been writing blog posts for nearly 20 years now. WordPress tells me I’ve written over 1,200 posts. So I asked AI to analyze my 1,200+ posts and give me my top three themes. Here’s what it came up with: Data management and data quality – these posts emphasize that data management is […]

Lots of feedback is a GOOD thing! A client in the middle of their AMS implementation said to me: “I’m getting a LOT of feedback from staff about what the system can and cannot do. Is that good or bad?” My response: “Feedback means they’re actually in the system and using it! That’s a good […]

Doing the reps… I’m helping a client with the implementation of a new AMS. During a recent call, their internal project manager said “I’m still not as familiar with the system as I’d like to be. I need to get in there more often and play around.” I responded: “That’s exactly right. I suggest you […]

Add one, remove one In the world of home-organizing, there’s the “one in, one out” rule. Simply put, for every new item that enters your home, one similar item must leave, helping to maintain a constant level of possessions and prevent clutter accumulation. This would be a great rule for database managers when considering adding new fields […]

Spring cleaning, all year long I talk frequently about “weeding the garden,” the idea that proactively managing your data, consistently, over time, is a better practice than trying to clean up the data in one big effort once every couple of years. But beyond the data itself, weeding the garden should also include making sure all […]

Don’t fall into the arrival fallacy trap The arrival fallacy is the false belief that reaching a specific milestone or achieving an external goal will automatically bring lasting happiness and fulfillment. I see this a lot when associations are seeking a new AMS. The thinking is “If we just get the right AMS, all of our data management […]

“The first time it lies to me is the last time I’ll use it.” Over the years, I’ve often chuckled under my breath when a client would tell me: “The system is giving me different answers to the same query. I think it’s making thing up!” In almost every case, what the client perceived to be […]