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

Write it down!

December 6, 2023

Write it down! If you’re in the market for a new AMS (or any new technology that has a breadth […]

Why “weeding the garden” is so important

November 30, 2023

Why “weeding the garden” is so important One of the most important activities for maintaining quality data in your database is […]

It’s time to stop excusing association professionals

November 15, 2023

It’s time to stop excusing association professionals I worked in associations for nearly 10 years, and have worked with associations […]

More demos is not better

November 8, 2023

More demos is not better When I work with clients on selecting a new system, I try very hard to […]

The database owner should be “passionate”

November 1, 2023

The database owner should be “passionate” I’m frequently asked by my clients: “Who should we put in charge of the database?” […]

Discipline is required

October 25, 2023

Discipline is required Last week I discussed the importance of taking action. To manage data effectively, it takes more than […]

Action is required

October 18, 2023

Action is required Over my many years of consulting, one thing I’ve noticed about many associations is their desire to do […]

Some data analytics tips from the DAN “Science Fair”

October 11, 2023

Some data analytics tips from the DAN “Science Fair” Last week I had the opportunity to attend the Data Science Fair, […]

Are all your processes frictionless?

October 4, 2023

Are all your processes frictionless? I’m not a huge fan of buzzwords, but I love the word “frictionless” as it […]

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