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

Managing Opt Outs

January 11, 2011

I’ve written several times before about managing email opt-outs (Here’s a short list). One issue that I continue to encounter […]

Sometimes One Feature is Enough

January 7, 2011

I use a Mac and thus I use Office 2008. Office 2011 was recently released, with much fanfare, in part […]

New Article Posted – The Timelessness of Business Process Review

December 17, 2010

I’ve posted a new article on my website. Way back in the 1900s (November 1996, to be exact), I wrote […]

Kudos to ASAE Foundation

November 29, 2010

I wrote here recently about my positive experience with donating to ASAE’s Foundation. Following my donation I received not one, […]

Association seeking iMIS Support Specialist

November 29, 2010

The National Recreation and Park Association has created a new position in the IT department and is currently looking for someone […]

Are you making it easy to give (or buy)?

November 15, 2010

I received, in the mail this weekend, a letter from the ASAE Foundation, asking me for a donation. Having been […]

Translator, Please.

November 9, 2010

I was speaking with Mike Murphy at the American Sociological Association about our upcoming session at the 2010 ASAE Technology […]

Protech Launches New SaaS Product

November 5, 2010

Protech Associates, a long-time AMS vendor, has announced the release of their latest product line, Memberpoint. Memberpoint is a SaaS […]

Database Training and Your Dog

November 4, 2010

Over the years, I’ve written a whole bunch about training (Click here for all kinds of tips.) Recently, Donna Dunn, […]

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