Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

My most recent posts

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 …

It’s time to stop excusing association professionals Read More »

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 …

More demos is not better Read More »

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 …

The database owner should be “passionate” Read More »

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, …

Discipline is required Read More »

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 …

Action is required Read More »

Older Posts

Your Vote Counts! ASAE Releases Data Standards Draft

May 30, 2007

The ASAE Data Standards Task Force announced the release of a draft standard for expressing constituent records in XML. This …

Your Vote Counts! ASAE Releases Data Standards Draft Read More »

Documenting Your Processes

May 29, 2007

I spoke at a users group meeting a few weeks ago, and asked if anyone in the audience had a …

Documenting Your Processes Read More »

Do Your Business Rules HINDER Success?

May 28, 2007

I was reading this article about the introduction of IBM's Thinkpad laptop and was struck by these two thoughts: At …

Do Your Business Rules HINDER Success? Read More »

JL Systems' Users Group Meeting

May 25, 2007

I spent the day at the Users Group meeting for JL Systems last week. JL is introducing a new product, …

JL Systems' Users Group Meeting Read More »

Weeding the Garden and Data Management

May 23, 2007

I was weeding my garden the other day, which is an activity I engage in exactly once per year. As …

Weeding the Garden and Data Management Read More »

It's About the Money

May 22, 2007

I’m working with a client who has a custom database application to manage their website and database. It’s actually a …

It's About the Money Read More »

Some Fascinating Data Management Statistics

May 22, 2007

I had not seen these stats before, but they are striking. From a 2004 Gartner report entitled "CRM Demands Data …

Some Fascinating Data Management Statistics Read More »

When your Software is TOO Good

May 21, 2007

I was recently called by a potential client who was looking to move from their existing software to another AMS …

When your Software is TOO Good Read More »

IT Salary Survey

May 18, 2007

I received a complimentary copy of Global Knowledge's IT salary survey a couple of weeks ago. The survey covered over 1,600 IT …

IT Salary Survey Read More »

Scroll to Top