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

New Article Posted – Association Data Management Trends for 2015

June 18, 2015

Over the course of the past 16 years of consulting, I’ve had the opportunity to work with hundreds of associations, […]

Annual Informz Email Benchmark Report Now Available

May 21, 2015

My clients always ask me about how they’re doing on email as compared to other associations. Ask no longer! Informz […]

New Article Posted – You Have to Actively Manage Your Database

May 20, 2015

I encounter people (often executive staff!) who perceive association management software (AMS) to be similar to other software products like […]

There's still time to participate

May 19, 2015

There’s still time to participate in my industry-first benchmarking study of association data management practices. You can participate here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/EDMBMSURVEY

New Article Posted – Using SMART Objectives to Manage Your Database

May 6, 2015

According to Wikipedia, the SMART mnemonic was developed by George T. Doran in 1981. I was first exposed to it […]

Be careful with phased implementations

April 30, 2015

A phased implementation is one where, at go-live, only certain critical functionality is available to staff and customers. For example, […]

Whether you know or it or not, you already have a data governance policy in place

April 29, 2015

In August at the ASAE Annual Meeting, I’ll be presenting a session on Data Governance along with Deb Hangar, ASAE’s […]

Do you have a "sandbox" environment?

April 24, 2015

When we were kids, the sandbox was the place you could play, and build things, and knock them down and […]

"The board never knows how hard we work."

April 23, 2015

When I work with my clients on their data management issues (especially when choosing a new AMS), I’ll ask them […]

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