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

Do your webinars really need to be live?

January 6, 2016

I was working with a client recently and the issue of webinars came up in the conversation. The association represents a […]

New Article Posted – Using Interactional Data to Increase Engagement and Revenue

December 22, 2015

Association management systems (AMS) as a specific software product have existed for more than 30 years. Not surprisingly, the original […]

Mistakes will be made

December 10, 2015

One of my favorite comic strips was “Life in Hell” and one of my favorite strips from that series was […]

Not just training, but RE-training…

December 9, 2015

I talk to associations every week about the challenges they are facing with their data management systems. One of the […]

The rise of the data manager

December 4, 2015

In my recently released benchmarking survey of association data management, I asked the following question: “Do you have a specific position […]

Small, medium, large? Depends who you ask.

December 3, 2015

I recently read on an association forum the following phrase: “We have a mid-sized meeting with around 7,000 attendees…” What caught my […]

The rising importance of Learning Management Systems

December 2, 2015

I work with associations of all sizes, ranging from zero staff (all-volunteer run) to over 700 staff. One thing I’ve […]

The inherent conflict between staff needs and customer needs

November 30, 2015

One of the greatest benefits of the internet revolution is that data management has been moved from staff to customer. […]

Data and technology are a means to an end, not the end itself

November 24, 2015

I love data and I love technology. So when there’s an opportunity to use new technology, or an opportunity to […]

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