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

New Article Posted

July 29, 2008

I’ve posted a new article on my website, entitled “Establishing a Contact Tracking Policy.” Of course, if you’re already on […]

Collect as little data as possible (when selling)

July 24, 2008

Yes, you read that right. When selling anything online, whether it’s membership joins, renewals, event registration, or product sales, you […]

BI Case Study: National Defense Industrial Association

July 22, 2008

This is the last of four case studies on how associations are using business intelligence, about which I presented at […]

Reports are Better than Queries

July 17, 2008

I’m often asked by my clients, when pulling data, if they should use a report or a query. The answer, […]

BI Case Study: Professional Golfers Association

July 8, 2008

This is the third of four case studies on how associations are using business intelligence, about which I presented at […]

BI Case Study: National Association of College and University Business Officers

June 17, 2008

This is the second of four case studies on how associations are using business intelligence, about which I presented at […]

BI Case Study: Texas Medical Association

June 12, 2008

This is the first of four case studies on how associations are using business intelligence, about which I presented at […]

More vendors allowing changes to online help

June 10, 2008

As I noted here, I was pleased to see an AMS vendor provide client access to their online help system. […]

Using Business Intelligence: Transactional vs. Transformational

June 5, 2008

I was sitting in a consulting workshop a few weeks ago being led by Alan Weiss. Alan was making the […]

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