Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Why bother with a consultant when I have AI?

By Wes Trochlil | October 14, 2026

Why bother with a consultant when I have AI? As AI becomes increasingly powerful, the value of using an AMS selection consultant (and many other types of consultants!) starts to come into question. After all, with very well-constructed prompts and responses, an association could develop a very solid needs analysis and RFP that could be used to […]

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 […]

Older Posts

Does it advance the mission?

August 14, 2019

Does it advance the mission? Because associations are mission-driven, everything you do should be seen through the prism of this […]

How should you start a new data project?

August 7, 2019

How should you start a new data project? When you’ve got a new data project on the horizon, and you’re […]

A Data Integrity Report…for Reports!

July 29, 2019

I’ve written elsewhere about the value of data integrity reports. But one of the most common complaints I hear from […]

Simple rules for complex systems

July 28, 2019

Simple rules for complex systems I first heard the phrase “simple rules for complex systems” from Jonah Goldberg, who was […]

Accentuate the positive

July 24, 2019

Accentuate the positive I’ve written before about the importance of database public relationsand celebrating success. I’ll add a third piece of wisdom […]

Annual dues vs. anniversary dues

July 10, 2019

Annual dues vs. anniversary dues I served as director of membership for several years at a couple of different associations. […]

A change of systems requires a change of mindset

July 8, 2019

Every AMS vendor will tell you that the toughest part of implementing a new system is getting the association staff […]

"Just because it's not optimal, doesn't mean it's not beneficial."

June 27, 2019

I’m a big fan of the author James Clear (https://jamesclear.com/) who writes about the formation of habits. I believe (good!) habits […]

It doesn’t have to be optimal to be beneficial

June 26, 2019

It doesn’t have to be optimal to be beneficial I’m a big fan of the author James Clear (https://jamesclear.com/) who […]

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