Stop Filling Positions and Open Front Doors
Aug 03, 2025
What if you designed your talent strategy from 2030 backwards instead of just posting "we're hiring?"
I bet you're thinking, "Come on, Dr. Joey. I can barely handle today's hiring challenges, and you want me to think that far ahead?"
Could that thought be what causes you to struggle to attract top talent?
Jeff, a tech company founder, learned this the hard way on a Tuesday morning that transformed his entire approach to talent attraction. His top candidate declined their offer, and it wasn't about money. "Your company seems focused only on today," the candidate told him. "I need to know where I'll be in five years."
Jeff realized something profound: Organizations that design their future instead of just react to the present attract top talent.
The VUCA Reality
Dr. Bob Johansen, futurist and former President of the Institute for the Future, describes today's talent landscape as "VUCA"—Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous.
"Most organizations are still thinking about the traditional office with people who are familiar with each other," Dr. Bob explains. "They've really been designed for similarity, for familiarity. But if you think future-back, we are going to be diverse whether we want to be or not."
The VUCA world requires a completely different approach to attract top talent. The solution? Think future-back.
Different Approaches. Better Results.
Here's how the traditional approach typically unfolds:
Traditional Approach:
- Identify current opening
- Define requirements based on past needs
- Post position and wait
- Select from whoever applies
Future-Back Approach:
- Envision your company 3-5 years ahead
- Identify capabilities needed for that future
- Create opportunities that lead toward that vision
- Attract talent excited to build that future
Companies with a clearly articulated future vision receive 50% more qualified applicants than those focused solely on current needs.
Purpose is Your North Star
Dr. Bob believes "The right starting point is purpose." Purpose aligns two critical elements:
- Collective Purpose (organizational mission)
- Individual Purpose (personal meaning)
Sarah, an HR director, transformed her company's talent attraction by starting every conversation with prospective team members with this question: "What brings meaning to your work?" Then she shares how the company mission can align with that personal purpose.
The result? Applications from high-caliber talent increased 53% in six months.
Research from The Blue Zones Project confirms this approach: "Purpose-driven people who work for purpose-driven organizations are happier, healthier, and the companies perform better."
Four Future-Back Attractors
Dr. Bob identifies four major "pulls" that attract top talent when you think future-back:
- Design Office, Officing, and OfficeVerse
Think beyond physical space to "ways of working" and "blended reality." Top talent cares as much about HOW work happens as WHERE it happens. Autonomy is key to this transition.
- Balance Outcomes and Impact
Move from "profit to prosperity" thinking. Research shows companies with strong purpose alignment outperform the market by 42%. - Focus on Climate Impact
"Young people are angry about this issue," Dr. Bob notes. Organizations that weave climate awareness into strategic decisions attract forward-thinking talent.
- Build Belonging Across Differences
"Everybody wants to have a sense of belonging," Dr. Bob explains. Creating belonging across differences is essential for top talent attraction. (Check out my LinkedIn Live event on belonging at xxx.)
Your Future-Back Challenge
Ready to design a future that attracts top talent? Here's your three-part challenge for this week:
- Envision Your Three-Year Future: Gather your team to create a compelling picture of where you're heading. What capabilities will you need?
- Audit Your Talent Messaging: Review your job postings and attraction materials. How much focus is there on an exciting future versus just current needs?
- Create One Future-Focused Initiative: Develop a specific program that connects current work to future possibilities. Make this visible in your talent attraction efforts.
Jeff, the tech founder, implemented these exact steps. Six months later, his candidate pipeline overflowed with forward-thinking talent eager to help build the company's future.
His key insight? "We stopped trying to fill positions and opened doors to the future."
The Bottom Line
The talent landscape may be VUCA, but when you think future-back, you design a work culture that naturally attracts top talent to walk through your front door.
Stop filling positions. Open doors to the future.
What's your question about creating a future-focused talent strategy? Ask Dr. Joey here.
Taken from Dr. Joey's latest book, Open the Front Door: How to Attract Top Talent Today, that launches this week.
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