Case Study: Food and Drug Administration achieves improved processes and stronger workforce engagement with IdeaScale

Food and Drug Administration Improving Processes with the Help of an Engaged Workforce

The Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) oversees the safety and effectiveness of prescription and over‑the‑counter drugs and needed to improve internal processes, hiring/retention and employee engagement across its 4,500 staff. CDER sought a way to tap frontline expertise and involve employees in problem‑solving while maintaining its mission‑critical regulatory work.

In 2014 CDER launched a crowdsourcing program on IdeaScale—running 13 timed challenges with structured intake, targeted communications and time‑off incentives—to gather frontline ideas. The effort produced 400+ submissions and yielded implemented improvements (quarterly all‑hands, a professional development coordinator, student program changes that increased placements by 10%, better reviewer–inspector communication and more training), boosting workforce engagement and evolving toward a continuous innovation engine.

Food and Drug Administration