Many problems today are too big to be solved by one person or one resource. This is what led to the idea of grid computing and programs like SETI that utilize spare CPU cycles on personal PC's. There are numerous applications of this today, but those I find most interesting actually leverage YOU as the key resource. Big "problems" or tasks can be doled out across hundreds or even thousands of people to complete. Because humans are generally interested in helping the fellow man, we are compelled to "do our part".
As an example, local newspapers are turning average citizens into a mass army of local reporters simply by having a presence on the web and providing a "Get Published" button. Instead of focusing on a large reporting staff to create broad appeal stories, the paper can reduce staff and offer sites tailored to news to that locale and thereby solicit more advertising to offset the losses with the printed version. The Cincinnati Enquirer is doing just this.
This idea can be applied to numerous other situations both inside and outside the office. For example, if a company is trying to keep up on it's competition it could harness the power of all employees to post competitive new products, trends, insights to a central blog, wiki, or micro-site providing instant visibility to all other empoloyees. Not only is this data more timely than formal competitive assessments, it is likely more rich in terms of the information and insights uncovered. Additionally, others can build off the findings through on-line comments, etc.
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