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

“Many mickles make a muckle.”

November 30, 2022

“Many mickles make a muckle.” “Many mickles make a muckle.” – George Washington Apparently, this was an old Scottish saying (and […]

It’s easy to collect; it’s harder to manage

November 16, 2022

It’s easy to collect; it’s harder to manage The beauty of today’s highly configurable AMS products is that they make […]

Tell them why you want the data

November 9, 2022

Tell them why you want the data Because data is so easy to collect these days, there’s a tendency to […]

Don’t get hung up on something minor

November 2, 2022

Don’t get hung up on something minor I’m a problem solver. I love to solve problems. Which is great until […]

Be flexible, especially for unusual requests

October 26, 2022

Be flexible, especially for unusual requests One of the great benefits of off-the-shelf association management software (AMS) products is that the products […]

“Her eyes were bigger than her stomach.”

October 19, 2022

“Her eyes were bigger than her stomach.” When I was a child, my siblings used to joke about how one […]

Once you buy crap…

October 12, 2022

Once you buy crap… “When you buy something cheap and bad, the best you’re going to feel about it is […]

It could always be worse

October 5, 2022

It could always be worse Because most of us don’t have the benefit (like I do) of seeing how other associations […]

It’s all about managing expectations

September 28, 2022

It’s all about managing expectations I placed an order online on a Friday and the store I was ordering from […]

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