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

The fallacy of "sunk cost"

April 22, 2016

As we all know, a sunk cost is a cost that has already been incurred and cannot be recovered. A […]

Do you have a test database?

April 21, 2016

A test database is a more-or-less exact copy of your live/production database environment. I often refer to this as a “sandbox” because the […]

Interactions, not just transactions

April 20, 2016

Working with a client last week on their selection of a new AMS, I was again reminded of how important […]

New Article Posted – It's time to get rid of the membership grace period

April 18, 2016

I started my career as a membership assistant at a trade association. We had 500 organizational members, and dues renewals […]

Significant changes at Personify

April 5, 2016

I had the opportunity to meet recently with Marc Bernstein and Andre Pavovlic from Personify. Marc is Vice President & […]

If you're sending more than five RFPs, you're doing it wrong.

March 31, 2016

I once heard of an association who had worked with a consultant on selecting a new AMS. The consultant had the […]

Where is that data?

March 30, 2016

One of the challenges that I see with many associations is knowing exactly where a given data point is housed within […]

"There are no solutions, only trade-offs"

March 29, 2016

I first heard this from Thomas Sowell many years ago. And I’ve written about it here and here and here. But […]

Vendors: PLEASE stop saying "only" or "first of its kind"

March 28, 2016

Here’s the thing about being “first” on anything. Only ONE company or person can be first. Only one. So when […]

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