Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Improvement is never linear

By Wes Trochlil | June 10, 2026

Improvement is never linear One of the many lessons one learns over a lifetime is that improvement, regardless of what you’re trying to improve, is never linear. That is, you’ll always have days where you’re better, and days where you don’t improve, or maybe even fall back. And so it is with data management. Even if you […]

Don’t forget to take a “before” picture!

By Wes Trochlil | June 3, 2026

Don’t forget to take a “before” picture! Whenever I start on a big home clean up or renovation project, I like to take a “before” picture, so that I can see the progress that was made when the project is complete. (Ironically, even though I’m the son of an award-winning amateur photographer, I often forget […]

Are you being penny wise and pound foolish?

By Wes Trochlil | May 27, 2026

Are you being penny wise and pound foolish? Two quick customer service stories to illustrate a point: First story: I’ve used the same email provider for more than 20 years. But for technical reasons, recently I needed to switch providers, so I canceled my service with them a few weeks in advance of my renewal. […]

AMS Products are getting better – and what that means for you

By Wes Trochlil | May 20, 2026

AMS Products are getting better – and what that means for you I’ve been working in and with AMS products for 36 years (27 years of consulting, nine years as an association staffer). And I can say with great confidence that the systems available today are much better than they were 36 years ago! (Shocking, I know.) But […]

Using AI beyond content generation

By Wes Trochlil | May 13, 2026

Using AI beyond content generation Recent surveys by ASAE and others suggest nearly 90% of associations are using AI for some type of content generation (e.g., creating blog posts, newsletter articles, “canned” responses to inquiries, etc.). That is great, but when it comes to data management, there are so many more opportunities for leveraging AI. Here are some ideas […]

Older Posts

Don't forget about ASAE's Technology Conference this week!

December 5, 2011

I’ll be speaking twice at the ASAE Technology Conference this week (Wednesday, December 7). My first session, with Rene Shonherd, […]

New Article Posted – Four Reasons to Establish an Internal Users Group

November 17, 2011

I’ve posted a new article on my website. A few years ago one of my most successful clients told me that […]

AMS Vendors Providing Educational Opportunities

November 15, 2011

I’ve noticed an uptick, lately, in the amount of free education being provided by AMS vendors. This is a promising […]

Interview of Wes Trochlil by TMA Resources

November 10, 2011

TMA Resources has begun a new series of weekly educational videos on their website called “Association Tech News.” In this […]

A great example of managing to the rule

November 9, 2011

I’ve written often about “managing to the exception,” the idea that all of our business rules have to apply to […]

Effective Change Requires Leadership

November 7, 2011

Effective change requires leadership. Leadership from the top. Compare these two situations (true stories, clients of mine from the past): […]

Short-Term Gain May Cause Long-Term Pain

November 4, 2011

When it comes to managing our organization’s data, we too often allow our staff some short-term gains which create long-term […]

Are you doing the work, or just talking about it?

November 2, 2011

I’ve worked with well over 100 associations in my years as a consultant. In my experience, those of my clients […]

You Have To Do Some of the Work! – A True Story

October 31, 2011

I once met with an association executive director to discuss the challenges she and her association were having with their […]

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