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

One for the AMS Vendors: Get PROACTIVE

July 23, 2007

I was trading emails with my colleague (and fellow AMS consultant) George Breeden recently, and he raised an issue that […]

Are you providing opt-out information?

July 20, 2007

Recently I began receiving emails from a political advocacy organization that has views that are, shall we say, completely counter […]

Association IT Salaries

July 19, 2007

In this post I talked about IT salaries in the general population. At the time I wasn’t aware that ASAE […]

Working with your vendor

July 18, 2007

Many associations struggle with the relationship they have with their software vendor. There are many reasons for this, but a primary […]

L-Soft Voluntarily Enters Bankruptcy

July 17, 2007

A client of mine sent me a note last week pointing out that L-Soft, the makers of Listserv software, has […]

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 […]

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