Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

AI is a journey, not a destination

By Wes Trochlil | April 15, 2026

AI is a journey, not a destination Lately I’ve noticed a lot of associations talking about AI like it’s a moon shot. “We need an AI project.” “We’re rolling out AI in Q4.” That language suggests AI is something you implement once and then check off the list. It isn’t. AI is a journey, and […]

Action produces information

By Wes Trochlil | April 8, 2026

Action produces information “Action produces information. If you’re unsure of what to do, just do anything, even if it’s the wrong thing. This will give you information about what you should actually be doing.” – Brian Armstrong, co-founder of Coinbase This is the great thing about data and why I’ve been in this business so long. […]

Why a single source of truth is so beneficial…

By Wes Trochlil | March 25, 2026

Why a single source of truth is so beneficial… The holy grail of data management is the “single source of truth.” As I like to characterize it, when someone asks “Where is the data about X?” everyone knows the answer and everyone gives the SAME answer. One of the most common challenges I hear from my […]

Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should

By Wes Trochlil | March 18, 2026

Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should I’ve worked in and with associations for well over 37 years now. And one of the things I’ve always loved and appreciated about association staffers is their willingness to do whatever is needed to get the job done. But the problem is this “Yes, we can!” attitude can also […]

Data doesn’t need to be perfect to be useful

By Wes Trochlil | March 4, 2026

Data doesn’t need to be perfect to be useful “Your data doesn’t have to be perfect to be useful.” – (Borrowed with permission from Intellidata’s Slice newsletter.) In my experience, many associations hold themselves back from cleaning up their data, because they are overwhelmed with where to start, and they also think success can only be achieved […]

Older Posts

iMIS 15: Color Me Unimpressed

July 17, 2007

On behalf of a client, I had the opportunity to see a brief demo of iMIS 15 last week. My […]

New RFP Shell Available (Shameless Plug)

July 16, 2007

Over the years I’ve frequently heard and read about associations looking for good RFP models for selecting a new association […]

Active vs. Passive Data Management

July 13, 2007

The key to successful data management is not choosing the right AMS (though obviously that's critical) but rather how you […]

Must-haves vs. Nice-to-haves

July 12, 2007

When developing an RFP on behalf of my clients, one of the items we'll discuss is "nice-to-haves" vs. "must-haves" on […]

Checking references; look for the older clients

July 11, 2007

One of the cardinal rules when buying a new association management system is to be sure to check references. Presumably […]

What baseline functionality should an AMS have?

July 10, 2007

I’m often asked this question (or a variant of it) by my clients and others. “Well shouldn’t every association management […]

One System or Multiple Systems?

July 9, 2007

Frank Sarlo from PDA recently posted the following to the ASAE technology listserver: "Our Programs and Meetings Department is researching […]

Some rest from blogging

July 2, 2007

I’ll be taking a rest from blogging during the week of July 4th. My typically brilliant posts on data management […]

Do as I Say, Not as I Do

June 29, 2007

There’s an old saying: “There are those that back up, and those that will.” And as I mention here, it’s […]

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