Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Guardrails can be helpful!

By Wes Trochlil | October 7, 2026

Guardrails can be helpful! When selecting a new AMS, I find my clients are often very tempted by custom software or “platform” systems (e.g., built on Salesforce or MS Dynamics) because these systems are infinitely configurable. After all, if I can make the system do anything I want, that’s a good thing, right? Well, maybe. In […]

“If you knew this information, what might you do differently?”

By Wes Trochlil | September 30, 2026

“If you knew this information, what might you do differently?” I had a conversation with a client recently about developing KPIs, reports, and queries from their forthcoming data warehouse. My client said: “We have a ton of requests for KPIs and reports. How do we determine which to focus on first?” My response: “When someone requests a dashboard […]

Showing is not teaching

By Wes Trochlil | September 23, 2026

Showing is not teaching In my experience, when new staff members are taught how to use their AMS (or LMS, CMS, FMS, etc.) they aren’t really taught how to use the system, they are shown how to use it. So what’s the difference? In a nutshell, showing only covers the “how” and “what.” But teaching […]

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 […]

Older Posts

Soliciting Feedback from Members and Customers

October 12, 2007

Aside from your annual “member survey,” what kind of mechanisms does your organization have in place to collect feedback from […]

"Overreacting to Blips"

October 10, 2007

At the Gartner CRM conference I attended recently (see my posts here), an analyst listed five key points about metrics. […]

Impressive Customer Service Follow Up

October 5, 2007

I recently placed an online order at Jockey.com for some t-shirts. My order was delivered as promised, but what really got […]

Registration Kiosks

October 4, 2007

I've been hearing a lot lately from vendors about "registration kiosks." These are computers or kiosks set up in a […]

Copies of Copies

October 3, 2007

I went to see my doctor the other day. At the end of the appointment, the doctor asked the receptionist […]

Best Practices in Software Training

October 2, 2007

I've done a lot of training on using software, and I've sat through even more in conjunction with implementation projects […]

Are your Rules Keeping Your Staff from Thinking?

October 1, 2007

Going through security at the airport the other day, I dutifully took my shoes off, pulled my laptop out of […]

Rants from Gartner

September 28, 2007

Other posts on the Cartner CRM Summit 2007 can be found here. Now that I’ve discussed all the take-aways from […]

Take-aways from Gartner, Part 6

September 27, 2007

Other posts on the Gartner CRM Summit 2007 can be found here. One of the Gartner presenters made the point […]

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