Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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It’s time to stop excusing association professionals

By Wes Trochlil | November 15, 2023

It’s time to stop excusing association professionals I worked in associations for nearly 10 years, and have worked with associations for over 25 years now. And over that time, I’ve heard some variation of the following thought (I’ve even expressed it myself): “You can’t expect the membership director to learn how to use the AMS; she’s not …

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More demos is not better

By Wes Trochlil | November 8, 2023

More demos is not better When I work with clients on selecting a new system, I try very hard to limit to three the number of systems that make it to the demo stage. (We’ll typically consider five or six systems prior to demos, but here I’m talking about demos specifically.) My clients will sometimes …

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The database owner should be “passionate”

By Wes Trochlil | November 1, 2023

The database owner should be “passionate” I’m frequently asked by my clients: “Who should we put in charge of the database?” And my first answer is “The person who is most passionate about the accuracy of the data.” I’ve written before about how there is no stasis in data management and that associations must be proactive when it …

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Discipline is required

By Wes Trochlil | October 25, 2023

Discipline is required Last week I discussed the importance of taking action. To manage data effectively, it takes more than just wanting to do something; you have to take action on your ideas. A corollary to that is that good data management also requires discipline. Put another way, once the idea is put into action, …

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Action is required

By Wes Trochlil | October 18, 2023

Action is required Over my many years of consulting, one thing I’ve noticed about many associations is their desire to do something without the commitment to do it. I call this the “wishlist effect.” Allow me to illustrate. It’s not uncommon for a client of mine to say something like the following: “We want to track …

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Older Posts

The power of users groups!

September 13, 2023

The power of users groups! Last week I had the honor and pleasure of speaking at the NetForum Users Group Conference. …

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Associations are complex businesses!

September 6, 2023

Associations are complex businesses! One of the reasons managing data at an association can be so challenging is because associations are very …

Associations are complex businesses! Read More »

Snapshots are required

August 30, 2023

Snapshots are required Recently a couple of different clients have asked me why it’s necessary to take a snapshot of …

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“It’s in the database…”

August 16, 2023

“It’s in the database…” I often joke with my clients that AMS nirvana looks like this: When someone asks “Where …

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Using the Pomodoro Technique for data management

August 9, 2023

Using the Pomodoro Technique for data management I’m a huge fan of the Pomodoro Technique, which is a time management technique …

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You need a PLAN to deal with duplicates

August 2, 2023

You need a PLAN to deal with duplicates Here’s the thing about duplicate records: No matter what you do, you’ll …

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Asking for more is a good sign…

July 26, 2023

Asking for more is a good sign… A client who had recently implemented a new AMS told me: “I’m concerned …

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Take action…

July 19, 2023

Take action… “The greatest wisdom not applied to action and behavior is meaningless data.” – Peter Drucker This is my …

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The Rule of 100 and 1,000 revisited

July 12, 2023

The Rule of 100 and 1,000 revisited I’m finding that the “Rule of 100 and 1,000” comes up quite often …

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