A product manager walks in to a bar…
You can probably think of dozens of jokes that start like this: “A [insert type of person / animal / inanimate object here] walks in to a bar.” Well, this tweet showed up in my Twitter feed this week:

A QA engineer walks into a bar. Runs into a bar. Crawls into a bar. Dances into a bar. Tiptoes into a bar. Rams into a bar. Jumps into a bar

— David Burns (@AutomatedTester) August 23, 2013

I was amused… and amazed that has been retweeted over 2400 times and favorited nearly 900. It got me thinking, though — how would a “product manager walks into a bar” joke end?

So, I took to Twitter with some ideas. And then some more. And soon enough, I had a bunch of #prodmgmtbarjokes, and others were joining in the fun. Want to participate? Just Tweet with the hashtag #prodmgmtbarjoke, or just follow along. Here are some of my favorites:

A product manager walks into a bar. Isn't what he expected so he immediately blames development for no reason. #prodmgmt #prodmgmtbarjoke

— Jeff Lash (@jefflash) August 27, 2013

A product manager walks into a bar. only one stool, one bottle b/c owner built minimum viable product #prodmgmt #prodmgmtbarjoke # custdev

— Jeff Lash (@jefflash) August 27, 2013

A product manager walks into a bar, asks for drink. Bartender says no, but will consider adding later. #irony #prodmgmt #prodmgmtbarjoke

— Jeff Lash (@jefflash) August 28, 2013

Product manager walks into drinking establishment b/c customer asked for it; they really wanted a long metal rod #prodmgmt #prodmgmtbarjoke

— Jeff Lash (@jefflash) August 28, 2013

Product manager walks into a bar but finds a supermarket. Owner says that they had a startup pivot. #prodmgmtbarjoke @jefflash

— Alicia Dixon (@specialLi1972) August 28, 2013

@jefflash A product manager tries to walk into a bar but can't b/c door isn't scheduled until next release #prodmgmt #prodmgmtbarjoke

— Dennis Newel (@dennisnewel) August 27, 2013

@jefflash a product manager walks into a bar and everyone stands up. #prodmgmt #prodmgmtbarjoke #standup

— matt robles (@misterMGR) August 27, 2013

How Does Your Innovation Strategy Compare?

I’ve posted here about the research I’m doing at SiriusDecisions related to innovation strategy — how business-to-business organizations make decisions about what markets, products, and areas to invest in with respect to innovation. We’re beginning to collect data on how companies approach their innovation investment strategy today. Many companies have told us that they’d like to understand whether their organizations are investing similarly to their peers, or to other companies of different sizes and in different industries.

We’ve just launched a short 4-question survey that should only take a minute of your time. So, if you’re interested in learning how other companies allocate their investment in innovation, and how your company compares, take the survey.

Speaking of innovation strategy, I put on a webcast on August 14 on Innovation Strategy: Choosing the Right Products and Opportunities to Drive Company Growth (there’s a description here). If you missed it, you can watch the recording.