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

Maintain regular contact with your vendor

March 18, 2015

When I help associations seek out and select new association management systems, one of the first questions I ask them […]

New Article Posted – "I'm as engaged as I want to be."

March 17, 2015

I believe understanding and measuring member engagement is not a fad; it’s a critical part of every association’s long-term survival […]

"It's a religious issue"

February 2, 2015

I first heard this phrase 20 years ago from my then IT director at a small association I was working […]

Getting buy-in from other users

January 28, 2015

One of the biggest challenges associations face when implementing a new association management system is staff buy-in. How do you get […]

(Even) more transparency from an AMS vendor

January 26, 2015

I’ve written several times about transparency among the AMS vendors, and I received another great example last week from MemberSuite’s […]

Job opening: Data Records Manager

January 14, 2015

A client of mine, National PTA in Alexandria, VA, has created a new position within the organization called “Data Records […]

Data managers vs. data consumers

January 12, 2015

As I work with my clients it becomes clear that there are two “classes” of users when it comes to […]

Start with just ONE idea for database cleaning

January 8, 2015

Are you overwhelmed by the idea of cleaning up your database? Rather than trying to fix it all, focus on […]

More transparency from an AMS vendor

January 7, 2015

I’ve written in the past about the need for more AMS vendors to be transparent about how things are going […]

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