Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Blog post themes over 20 years…

By Wes Trochlil | August 5, 2026

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!

By Wes Trochlil | July 29, 2026

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…

By Wes Trochlil | July 22, 2026

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

By Wes Trochlil | July 15, 2026

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

By Wes Trochlil | July 8, 2026

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 […]

Older Posts

Carefirst Gets it Wrong and Then Gets it Right

August 28, 2008

I recently had need to call Carefirst (my health insurance company) because they had made a billing error. I had […]

Centralized vs. decentralized data entry

August 26, 2008

There was a discussion on a users group listserver a few days ago about the pros and cons of centralized […]

Changing from a staff-centric to customer-centric view

August 21, 2008

One of the most significant changes to occur over the past couple of years in database management is the idea […]

Get your IT people on the team

August 19, 2008

By show of hands, how many of you have an “IT” person on your senior management team? Is the most […]

Check your metrics

August 14, 2008

When I work with my clients on the implementation of a new database, there is a tendency to focus on […]

When you compromise, no one is happy

August 12, 2008

I recently traded emails with an association colleague of mine, an executive director of a small association, asking him how […]

ARC Solutions Demo

August 7, 2008

I had the opportunity to sit through a lengthy demo of the Polaris product from ARC Solutions. Overall I was […]

Take my one question survey

August 5, 2008

If you are an association staffer or executive, I’d appreciate it if you could answer my one question survey. It […]

Swimming with your clothes on (When it's time for a staff change)

July 31, 2008

Let’s face it, sometimes there is a mismatch between a person’s abilities or attitude, and the needs of the job. […]

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