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

Take-aways from Gartner, Part 5

September 26, 2007

Note: This post is especially for Ben Martin. 😉 Other posts on the Cartner CRM Summit 2007 can be found […]

Take-aways from Gartner, Part 4

September 25, 2007

Other posts on the Gartner CRM Summit 2007 can be found here. One of the Gartner presenters identified three areas […]

Take-aways from Gartner, Part 3

September 24, 2007

Other posts on the Cartner CRM Summit 2007 can be found here. A prediction from the Gartner conference: Up to […]

Whose Responsibility is Quality Assurance?

September 21, 2007

A client of mine asked her vendor to make a fix to their database. After making the fix, the vendor […]

Take-aways from Gartner, Part 2

September 20, 2007

Other posts on the Gartner CRM Summit 2007 can be found here. According to one of the speakers during the […]

Take-aways from Gartner, Part 1

September 19, 2007

These next several posts will focus on issues raised during the Gartner CRM Conference Summit 2007 which I think are […]

Off to the Gartner Customer Relationship Management Summit

September 17, 2007

I'm attending the Gartner Customer Relationship Management Summit in beautiful Ft. Lauderdale for the next three days. Among other things, […]

Tips for Managing Your AMS Kick-off

September 12, 2007

Kristine Metter at AcademyHealth has been working with her staff as they go live with a new association management system. […]

The Power of the Handwritten Note

September 11, 2007

Over the past couple of months I’ve written two articles for ASAE’s magazine Associations Now. In both cases, once the […]

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