Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

[ai_chat_window]

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

Database Maintenance: The Unsung Hero

November 2, 2016

A recent episode of the Freakonomics Podcast was entitled “In Praise of Maintenance,” and asked the question: “Has our culture’s […]

Bad Systems Can Make Good People Leave

November 1, 2016

In the past week I’ve met with two different associations who are struggling with their current AMS systems. A common theme […]

"Can't you just tell me which shovel is best?"

October 26, 2016

When I work with clients on selecting a new AMS, it’s not uncommon for me to hear some variation of […]

This is NOT what business development looks like

October 24, 2016

A client of mine wanted to send an RFP for redesign of their website to a design company I had […]

"Our old system used to…"

October 21, 2016

In my experience, when associations make a database system change, staff will sometimes talk about how the old system used to work. […]

80% is good enough – data edition

October 19, 2016

I’ve written elsewhere that 80% is Good Enough when it comes to selecting a new AMS. That is,  if you […]

Just like children, we all need boundaries

October 17, 2016

Recently I was discussing with a client their rules for how they manage event registration. As my client described the […]

"User-friendly" is in the eye of the beholder

October 13, 2016

Just like beauty, the idea of software being “user-friendly” is in the eye of the beholder. Very often when I […]

Use your data to communicate with first-year members differently

October 12, 2016

Long ago, I was a membership director in a couple of different trade associations. And as any membership professional knows, […]

Scroll to Top