Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

My most recent posts

Data integrity reports

By Wes Trochlil | July 9, 2025

Data integrity reports I speak and write a lot about data integrity reports. So I was pleased to see a post recently on ASAE’s Collaborate from Shaun Holloway, Director of Information Technology, at the American Motorcyclist Association, outlining a list of what he called “data hygiene checks.” As a reminder, the purpose of a data integrity […]

The most important training tip

By Wes Trochlil | June 25, 2025

The most important training tip I’ve been sitting in a lot of database training sessions recently, and I’ve been reminded of the following: whether you are doing the training yourself, or you use your vendor or a third-party for training, when you’re teaching a process… Tell them what you’re going to do Do it Tell […]

Be careful about getting tangled

By Wes Trochlil | June 18, 2025

Be careful about getting tangled “We had done a lot to tangle ourselves up.” – Bridget Walsh, Chief Operating Officer at Emergency Nurses Association In a discussion at AMS Fest this week, this is how Bridget Walsh characterized what their AMS of 17+ years looked like as they worked to move from their legacy system to a […]

Discipline. Always discipline.

By Wes Trochlil | June 11, 2025

Discipline. Always discipline. I’ve been producing a newsletter in some form for over 25 years now. I’ve found that certain topics are evergreen; they come up all the time and I feel compelled to write about them again and again. One of those topics is discipline. A quick search of my blog posts shows I’ve […]

Simpler is better

By Wes Trochlil | June 4, 2025

Simpler is better Recently, a client of mine was discussing how they manage membership reinstatements. For example, if a member doesn’t renew within the grace period, is dropped from membership, and then rejoins in less than a year from dropping, are they called a new member, a renewed member, or a reinstatement? After several minutes […]

Older Posts

There’s always gonna be something

April 30, 2025

There’s always gonna be something I’ve been consulting for 26 years now and I’m still sometimes surprised to learn that […]

Eyes wide open and affirmative decision-making

April 16, 2025

Eyes wide open and affirmative decision-making When I work with my clients on any type of project, whether it’s selection […]

Honoring an industry legend

April 9, 2025

Honoring an industry legend I’m taking a break from my usual data management tips to acknowledge the passing of an […]

Never burn a bridge

April 2, 2025

Never burn a bridge My children have reached the age where they have, or are, entering the professional workforce. One […]

You CAN compete with the big guys…

April 2, 2025

You CAN compete with the big guys… In my experience, associations often undersell their actual ability to provide high level […]

Join (or start) your users group!

March 26, 2025

Join (or start) your users group! Today’s message is simple: If the AMS you’re using has a users group, you […]

They don’t care, until they care.

March 19, 2025

They don’t care, until they care. One of the more common questions I get from my clients is “How can […]

Longfellow and data management

March 12, 2025

Longfellow and data management “We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing while others judge us by what […]

Do you really need all that historical data?

March 5, 2025

Do you really need all that historical data? A question I’ll often get from my clients as they’re making the […]

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