Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Data management is improvisation

By Wes Trochlil | September 16, 2026

Data management is improvisation I was listening to a podcast recently featuring TV writer Rob Long. During the podcast he said (I’m paraphrasing) that, in order to be successful, one needs to learn to improvise, because nothing in life ever goes as planned. One of my favorite sayings is, “If you want to make God […]

Who own the AMS company is like the weather…

By Wes Trochlil | September 9, 2026

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.”

By Wes Trochlil | September 2, 2026

“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

By Wes Trochlil | August 26, 2026

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

By Wes Trochlil | August 12, 2026

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 […]

Older Posts

Too many demos, too much perfume

September 16, 2008

When I work with clients on system selection (or when I’m presenting on this topic), I point out that one […]

From CIO to CPO

September 11, 2008

At the recent ASAE Technology Section Council meeting, Heidi Byerly of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) made the […]

Trust is critical to success

September 9, 2008

It may be a cliche, but one of the most critical elements to the long-term success of your database is […]

Staff News

September 4, 2008

I have a client who sends an every other week email newsletter, nicely formatted and designed, simply called “Staff News.” […]

Zappos and Facebook

September 2, 2008

Admittedly, I’m not much of a social media maven. I’m on Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo, and maybe a couple of others, […]

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 […]

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