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

New Features in IMPAK

May 15, 2007

I recently sat in a demo for ISSI's IMPAK software. I've been working with ISSI since 2002. I've always said […]

Top Five Reports

May 14, 2007

A vendor asked me the following: "What are the top 5 most useful or most valuable reports that you've seen […]

ARC Solutions' New Polaris Product

May 14, 2007

ARC Solutions is a small but growing AMS provider located in Washington, DC. One of my clients purchased their original […]

Research about On-Demand vs. Premise-Based CRMs

May 11, 2007

I read an interesting report from CSO Insights. The report is a study on premise-based CRM products (e.g., Siebel, Oracle) […]

Stop Nagging Me!

May 11, 2007

I recently renewed my directory listing in ASAE's Technology Solutions Guide. The renewal has a fee attached to it. I […]

Attending Protech's First Customer Conference

May 10, 2007

Protech held their first annual users group conference last week in DC. I thought it was a pretty good effort, […]

Mystery Shopping

May 9, 2007

At a session at TAUG (TMA Resources Annual Users Group meeting), Ron Moen asked a great question: "How many of […]

Avectra's new Wiki

May 9, 2007

So this is very cool: http://wiki.avectra.com Avectra has created a wiki for (as they put it) "the use of its […]

Dashboards

May 8, 2007

For years now I've been hearing from vendors about "dashboards." (I think the first time I heard the term was […]

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