Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

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 […]

“As good or better than me.”

By Wes Trochlil | September 2, 2026

“As good or better than me.” I was recently speaking with a software developer working on AI and we were discussing using natural language querying in an AMS. I told him, “The biggest challenge you face is that the first time the AI is wrong, staff will never use it again.” He agreed but then added: “The […]

Documentation is insurance

By Wes Trochlil | August 26, 2026

Documentation is insurance In a conversation with a client about their data management needs, the client pointed out that if they lost one or two key staff members, so much institutional knowledge would go with them that the association would have real difficulty managing their AMS. I recommended that they should document all of their key processes so […]

It all comes down to fundamentals

By Wes Trochlil | August 12, 2026

It all comes down to fundamentals I’m preparing for a webinar that I’m presenting in a couple of weeks, on using data to improve marketing and communications. This is a presentation (in one form or another) that I’ve made for nearly 20 years, and it includes an excellent case study of one association that dramatically improved their […]

Older Posts

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 […]

Attending TAUG

May 7, 2007

I had the opportunity to attend TMA Resources Annual Users Group meeting (TAUG) last week in Albuquerque. They put on […]

Data Integrity Manager

May 2, 2007

I'm always urging my clients to develop staff positions that focus on maintenance of the database. And I don't mean […]

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