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

Users are important, but don't forget about your data consumers

November 7, 2017

Last week I wrote about an association with 60 staff but only six users. Today I want to talk about […]

Consultants Unmasked

November 6, 2017

  Consultants Unmasked! Join us on Tuesday, November 14 • 10:45 – 11:45am   This is your chance to ask […]

GDPR is coming; are you prepared?

November 3, 2017

The European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) goes into effect in May 2018. In a nutshell, GDPR creates […]

60 staff but only six users; and that's OK

November 2, 2017

I was working with an association recently, helping them select a new association management system. The association has 60 FTEs, working […]

Two new articles posted…

October 19, 2017

In case you missed it, I’ve published two new articles on my site. Don’t overlook the progress made when moving […]

Are your customers' passwords hidden from staff view? They should be!

August 4, 2017

Are the passwords for your members and customers in your database hidden from staff view (e.g., hashed out or showing a […]

If you collect data, you must also maintain it

August 2, 2017

One of the joys of today’s database technology is that it makes it exceedingly easy to collect data. Put an online […]

New Article Posted: Seven Things You Should Do in Your AMS

July 20, 2017

Given how advanced and thorough the modern association management software (AMS) system has become, there are many opportunities for your […]

Significant change in CASL Law

July 13, 2017

CASL is the Canadian Anti-spam Law, which was passed several years ago, and is now in full effect in Canada. […]

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