Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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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

Improving transparency

November 12, 2014

In my last blog post I wrote about Protech’s efforts to improve transparency into their company, an effort that I […]

Thoughts on Protech User Conference

November 10, 2014

I had the opportunity to attend Protech’s Annual Users Conference in September, and one of the overriding themes from Brian […]

"We call it the coffin."

November 7, 2014

I was meeting with a group of association CFOs recently, discussing how they use their association databases. During the course of the […]

New Article Posted – Measuring Engagement: Just a Fad, or Here to Stay?

October 29, 2014

Within the association community, there is always buzz around something. For the past several years, the buzz was “big data.” […]

Some tips on how marketing and membership staff can work effectively with the CEO

September 18, 2014

This article, co-authored by Scott Oser and myself, outlines some highlights from our sessions at the recent ASAE Membership & Marketing […]

Why you shouldn’t build your own software (from someone who knows!)

September 16, 2014

This blog post is LONG and fascinating (unfortunately, it’s no longer online!). It’s written by the CEO of an AMS […]

New Article Posted – Amazon and Other e-Commerce Sites Set the Bar

August 4, 2014

Amazon.com is easily my favorite place to shop online. Everything about the experience there is top-notch. Of course, any of us […]

See me at the September 4 ASAE Idea Swap

August 4, 2014

On September 4, I’ll be the featured speaker at the Loudoun County Idea Swap hosted by ASAE and held at […]

REMINDER: Free Seminar on Data Management

July 28, 2014

Tate & Tryon is hosting a FREE seminar on data management, designed especially for C-suite executives, this Wednesday, July 30, […]

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