What do you do if the company you want to work for isn't hiring?
Start building relationships there anyway. That's the advice from Austin Belcak, founder of Cultivated Culture and host of The Dream Job System Podcast. In a short episode on this exact situation, he explains that good companies are always expanding, that a large share of roles are filled before they're ever posted, and that the people who get those roles are the ones who were already known to the team when the need came up.
'Not hiring' usually means 'not posting'
Austin's first point is that a careers page with nothing on it tells you very little. Companies worth working for are growing, and growth creates roles continuously: someone leaves, a team gets budget, a new project needs an owner. Those needs don't appear as a job ad the moment they arise. Often they're filled by a referral or an internal move before a posting is ever written.
So the host explains that an empty job board isn't a closed door. It's a snapshot of what's been formally opened this week, which is a small fraction of the hiring that will happen over the next six months.
The hidden job market is where the good roles go
This is what Austin calls the hidden job market: positions that get filled through networks rather than applications. His broader approach on the show is built on the idea that applying online is the lowest-odds route into a company, and the hidden market is why. By the time a role is public, a hiring manager often already has a candidate in mind.
The practical implication is that your goal isn't to catch the posting. It's to be the person the team thinks of when the need appears. That only happens if they know you before then.
Build the relationships before you need them
Austin's core instruction is to start reaching out now, even with nothing to apply for. Identify people on the teams you'd want to join, connect with them, and have genuine conversations about their work. Ask what they're building, what problems they're dealing with, and what makes someone succeed there.
The host's argument is that this proactive relationship-building accelerates opportunities. When a role opens, you're not a stranger submitting a resume. You're someone a team member can vouch for, and possibly someone they'll flag before the posting goes live. On the following episode, Austin draws the line between a one-off referral and an advocate who actively champions you, and this early relationship work is how advocates get made.
Turning the wait into an advantage
There's a mindset shift underneath all of this. Most job seekers treat a company that isn't hiring as a dead end and move on to the next posting. Austin flips it: the fact that there's no posting means there's also no competition right now. You can build a reputation inside the company with nobody else in the queue.
By the time a role does open, you've had months of conversations, you understand the team's priorities, and you may have people inside willing to walk your name to the hiring manager. That's a far stronger position than being one of several hundred applicants on day one of a public posting.
What to remember
- An empty careers page doesn't mean no openings; growing companies create roles constantly, and many are never posted.
- The hidden job market fills roles through relationships before applications are ever reviewed.
- Start connecting with people on your target teams now, while there's nothing to apply for.
- Being known to the team before a need arises is what gets you considered first.
- Use the quiet period as a head start instead of treating it as a dead end.
People also ask
Should I still apply if a company has no open roles?
There's nothing to apply to yet, and Austin's point is that applying isn't the main route in anyway. Focus on building relationships with people on the team so you're top of mind when a role opens.
How do I reach out to people at a company that isn't hiring?
Connect with people on the teams you'd want to join and ask about their work and challenges. Austin's approach is to build genuine relationships first rather than lead with a request for a job.
What is the hidden job market?
Roles that get filled through networks and referrals before they're publicly posted. Austin says this is where a large share of hiring happens, which is why relationships matter more than applications.
Based on Episode 889, "What To Do If Your Dream Company Isn't Hiring," released September 14, 2026 on The Dream Job System Podcast, hosted by Austin Belcak of Cultivated Culture.
