2. Start by preparing the ground

Many employees have ideas, but few dare to express them. And yet, among all these ideas, there may be an interesting nugget. Your organization may communicate regularly about its receptiveness to new ideas, but chances are it won't have much effect.

You'll need to create an atmosphere conducive to the emergence of new ideas. You'll also need to think about associating recognition with your approach, whatever form that recognition may take. There are many ways of doing this, including special bonuses, payment for filing a patent, ideas competitions, and even joint bonuses based on the number of ideas generated collectively by an organization.

As soon as they feel liberated and motivated, your employees will become contributors, and some of them may even turn out to be very prolific. However, once the groundwork has been laid, you'll need...