It’s that time of year when we look back fondly at the top product management insights from the last 12 months, and pair them up with a puzzling parade of highs and lows from pop culture.
Because it’s 2020, we’ll be wrestling with murder hornets, tumbleweed tornadoes, and asparagus psychics. So grab a quarantini and let the joyscrolling commence!
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I’ll do my best to avoid the c-word, p-word, and e-word. If you want substantive commentary on those events of 2020, I’d refer you to the usual sources of truth and objectivity: The Onion and The Babylon Bee.
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January
High: The year starts with comedian Ricky Gervais roasting Hollywood at the Golden Globes.
Low: We get a glimpse inside the mind of Dr. Phil’s musician son when his bizarrely-decorated mansion goes up for sale.
Product: Sam Somashekar brings good news to Waterfall Product Managers: It’s still possible to be agile!
Disturbing: Skittles raises eyebrows and twists sensitive stomachs with its “Yogurt Boy” ad.
RIP: Highlander star Stan Hirsch.
February
High: Social media lights up when a thrift shop in Belgium releases pictures from an old photo album of a mystery woman hugging Patrick Stewart, Angelina Jolie, Robert Downey Jr., and many more A-list celebrities.
Low: TV audiences debate: Was JLo and Shakira’s Super Bowl halftime performance empowering to women? Or objectifying? Or was it… both?
Product: Rohini Pandhi, Product Manager at Square, shares how to create consistency within the chaos of roadmapping.
Tasty new term: Lasagne of value.
Decidedly less tasty new term: Urinary auto-brewery syndrome.
March
High: John Krasinski highlights Some Good News from around the world just when we needed it most.
Low: Gal Gadot and friends warble out a cover of Imagine to cheer people up amid global lockdowns… and it doesn’t go over so well.
Product: When Go To Market efforts are aligned, you can achieve up to 19% faster revenue growth and 15% higher profitability.
Random YouTube video: Kenny Lauderdale debuts his Chargeman Ken retrospective “The Best Bad Anime” and I can’t believe I’ve never heard of it because this madness sounds right up my alley.
April
High: In her royal address, Queen Elizabeth provides the internet with perfect Photoshop bait.
Low: Ellen’s backstage drama continues to make headlines.
Product: Meghan Nesta talks through three ways to stay engaged with people inside and outside the product organization (three minute video).
May
High: In the finale of Star Wars: Clone Wars, Ahsoka lets go of the past to forge her future.
Low: John Krasinski explains to furious fans why he sold Some Good News to CBS.
Product: Steve Johnson outlines the VIDEO framework for feature prioritization.
Also: Tumbleweed tornado.
June
High: A man finishes his 75-day silent retreat and poses one simple question to Twitter: “Did I miss anything?”
Low: Ex-eBay employees charged with mailing spiders, cockroaches and pig mask to couple who criticized the ecommerce company.
Product: Nacho Bassino explains how to generate meaningful insights using several ideation frameworks.
RIP: Legendary DC writer Denny O’Neil and veteran Marvel inker Joltin’ Joe Sinnot.
July
High: Wisconsin man keeps promise made in 1992 and splits $22 million lottery winnings with friend.
Low: “Zombie” cicadas sexually transmit mind-controlling fungus in West Virginia.
Product: Jason Fried, founder of Basecamp, talks about strategy and managing risk in light of managing two products.
Also: Murder hornets, because 2020.
RIP: TV legend Regis Philbin, whose autographed photo I have had on my desk for, literally, decades because I admire his sense of humor, ability to tell a story, and the respectful way he interacted with others on camera.
August
High: The gang at Rifftrax debuts Lycan Colony, the story of a brain surgeon who shows up to work drunk, accidentally kills a patient, and is forced to move to a town inhabited by werewolves.
Low: An austrian tourist damages 200-year-old Italian sculpture while posing for selfie, proving it’s not just Americans doing this kind of thing.
Product: To redress focus on product lifecycle beyond development, Adrienne Tan reimagines McCarthy’s 4 Ps of Marketing to create the 7 Ps of Product.
RIP: Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman.
September
High: Rob Sheridan reveals that Home Depot’s website has a “visualize in your home” feature for the 12-foot skeleton Halloween decoration.
Low: Turns out black licorice doesn’t just taste gross; black licorice can actually kill you.
Product: Rich Mironov starts advising his clients to delete the letters “MVP” from roadmaps and product charters.
RIP: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
October
High: Batman: Three Jokers redefines Batman and Joker’s rivalry.
Low: Hairy, venomous caterpillars start to menace Virginia because, again, 2020.
Product: John Pagonis shares his experience of creating an evidence-based backlog.
You shouldn’t pet those venomous caterpillars but this guy is fine: Puppy with green fur born in Italy.
RIP: Sean Connery and Eddie Van Halen.
November
High: Two highly-effective vaccines debut in record-time.
Low: Culled mink rise from the dead to Denmark’s horror.
Product: Dr. Jim Anderson discusses product managers rethinking their breakfast strategies in light of current events.
Scorchin’: Pringles wins the award for most awkward commercial of the year.
RIP: Alex Trebek.
December
High: John Krasinski and Dwanta Claus spread holiday cheer for the end of 2020.
Low: Asparagus psychic predicts trouble for Harry and Meghan in 2021. #asparamancer
Product: Andre Theus explains how to run a collaborative roadmapping exercise with your team.
What Were Your Favorite Stories From 2020?
Some Good News with John Krasinski is a standout for me because it was such a rollercoaster ride — from its debut bringing people some hope, to its sale making some people so angry, to its return in December to close out the year with $5 million for Toys for Tots.
Also: Kenny Lauderdale’s Chargeman Ken retrospective convinced me to add that show to my 2021 playlist.
What were your favorite stories of 2020?
