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

Implementation Intention

November 8, 2018

Implementation Intention Editor’s note: I have a new email newsletter, sent weekly, called Wes’s Wednesday Wisdom. Click here to subscribe In […]

New Article Posted: You Can't Just Plan, You Must "Do"

April 19, 2018

There’s a book by David Maister, one of the preeminent consulting gurus, entitled “Strategy and the Fat Smoker: Doing What’s […]

New Article Posted: How Cognitive Biases Can Affect Data Management

March 22, 2018

Anyone who has ever taken an intro level course on psych (or just reads a lot) has probably encountered the […]

There's no need to run parallel systems

February 1, 2018

Back in the day (I mean WAY back), the standard practice when switching from one database system to another was to […]

Standardize before you optimize

January 25, 2018

I first read this phrase in a James Clear blog post. And what it means, simply put, is that before […]

What is "small"? Depends on who you ask.

January 17, 2018

Over my nearly 30 years in the association space, one of the things that always gives me a chuckle is […]

"Too expensive" and "Doesn't provide enough value" are the same thing

January 16, 2018

I recently came across a one-question service from a service provider (I think it was some kind of online software…) […]

Are you talking about your data? You should be.

January 12, 2018

In his book Contagious, Jonah Berger discusses the concept of “social influence.” In short, social influence is a change in […]

The Number of Test Scenarios Illustrates How Complex Your Business Rules Are

January 11, 2018

During the process of implementing a new AMS, one of the steps you’ll take is creating and testing scenarios for […]

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