I would suggest at least 2 things:

1. If you can get people doing research for a concerted period of time then consider contacting someone like the Global Priorities Institute to see which research areas they recommend. Incentive for the firm is that they would get their employees published which they could use for project proposals
2. I think pro bono economics are always looking for people to help perform impact analyses so you contact them too to get some of your employees helping on their projects. Less of an incentive for the firm here but it develops data management and analysis skills and is less time-intense than taking on a research project https://www.probonoeconomics.com/about