Technostress or FOBO (Fear of Becoming Obsolete): What Has Entered the HR Realm

The world of work is undergoing a profound transformation. Technology, especially artificial intelligence, automation, machine learning, and predictive analytics—is no longer a support function but a driving force behind corporate strategy and competitive advantage. While organizations celebrate productivity gains and operational efficiency, an invisible psychological tension is growing within the workforce. Employees are being compelled to continuously adapt to new systems, new platforms, and new expectations. HR leaders are encountering two emerging phenomena: Technostress, caused by technology overload in the present, and FOBO (Fear of Becoming Obsolete), driven by anxiety about future relevance in the age of automation. These forces are now shaping talent strategies, mental well-being, and learning about cultures across organizations.

Technostress refers to the cognitive fatigue and emotional strain that employees experience when they are overwhelmed by digital tools or rapid technological change. In many corporates today, the intention behind technology implementation is efficiency; however, the reality is fragmented workflows and digital exhaustion. For example, a multinational consulting firm introduced multiple productivity software platforms—Microsoft Teams for communication, Jira for project tracking, SAP for HR tasks, and PowerBI for analytics reports. While management expected seamless coordination and faster delivery, employees instead reported losing up to 21% of productive time weekly because of continuous app switching and constant notifications.

This phenomenon, termed "context switching fatigue," creates the feeling of working harder without accomplishing more. Google and Meta experienced similar challenges during remote work expansion. Internal reviews revealed that excessive video conferencing led to a rapid decline in engagement and significant burnout. Consequently, both companies implemented “no-meeting days” and asynchronous work norms to relieve digital overload. Volkswagen went a step further, configuring internal servers to stop delivering emails after working hours to protect employee work-life balance. These examples reflect a growing understanding that when technology becomes the environment instead of merely supporting work, fatigue becomes inevitable.

While technostress is triggered by technological overload in the present, FOBO—Fear of Becoming Obsolete—is rooted in the future. FOBO emerges when employees believe that rapid technological advancement will make their skills irrelevant, potentially threatening their employability. Unlike technostress, which is visible through exhaustion and disengagement, FOBO is subtle and deeply psychological. It manifests as hesitation toward innovation, reluctance to share knowledge, or a perceived loss of professional identity. FOBO escalates when organizations aggressively adopt automation or AI without simultaneously investing in upskilling pathways. The introduction of robots in Amazon’s warehouses increased operational efficiency, but internal employee surveys revealed widespread fear that automation would eventually replace human roles. To address this, Amazon launched the Career Choice Program, offering employees funding to pursue future-ready education—even if it prepares them for jobs outside Amazon. The message is clear: FOBO pushes companies to move from protecting jobs to protecting employability.

IBM provides another compelling case. The company shifted its hiring model by eliminating degree requirements for nearly 50% of its job roles and focusing instead on skill proficiency. Although this initiative democratized opportunities, it triggered FOBO among mid-career employees who feared that younger, digitally native candidates might outpace them. In response, IBM created internal AI-driven learning dashboards that map current employee skills against future corporate skill demand, helping workers plan their development paths strategically. Accenture followed a similar approach, investing $1 billion annually into continuous reskilling and training. Their philosophy suggests that organizations grow when employees grow, thereby positioning learning as a business priority, not a benefit. This approach reduces FOBO by providing a clear answer to an employee’s biggest fear: “Where do I fit in the future of this organization?”

Despite their differences, technostress and FOBO intersect in one critical aspect—they directly influence employee mental well-being and organizational performance. Technostress leads to present discomfort, while FOBO creates future insecurity. Together, they reduce creativity, innovation willingness, and loyalty. Employees experiencing technostress often avoid learning new tools because they already feel overwhelmed; employees experiencing FOBO avoid deep developmental commitments because they believe their effort may still not be enough to survive automation. In both cases, resistance to change increases—not because employees are incapable of adapting, but because psychological safety is missing. The fear of becoming irrelevant can make even experienced professionals doubt their abilities. Knowledge hoarding, silo behavior, and resistance to technological adoption all emerge as a result.

This evolving landscape places HR in a powerful yet demanding position. Historically, HR focused on hiring, compliance, and performance evaluation. Today, HR is becoming the architect of human reinvention. To manage technostress, HR can start by simplifying technology environments rather than adding new tools on top of existing ones. Tool audits should ensure that digital systems reduce workload instead of complicating it. Encouraging policies like digital quiet hours, no-meeting zones, or asynchronous communication can protect employees from constant digital intrusion. HR can also collaborate with leaders to redesign workflows where technology complements human capability rather than dictating it. In doing so, HR not only reduces burnout but also restores autonomy and psychological control to employees.

To address FOBO, HR must focus on building a culture of continuous learning and future confidence. Companies like Tata Steel have established Digital Academies—structured learning ecosystems where employees can acquire essential digital skills at their own pace. Microsoft, under Satya Nadella, shifted the entire organization’s mindset from “know-it-all” to “learn-it-all,” emphasizing curiosity over expertise. This change is critical because FOBO thrives not in environments where employees lack skills, but in environments where employees lack learning opportunities. The most successful organizations today do not promise lifelong roles; they promise lifelong learning. HR must communicate transparently about how job roles evolve and identify new internal career pathways so employees can see a future inside the organization instead of fearing displacement.

Ultimately, the future will not belong to organizations with the most advanced technology but to those that cultivate the most adaptable people. Technostress and FOBO are signals that employees are struggling with pace, complexity, and uncertainty. Addressing them requires shifting HR from enforcing change to enabling transformation. When employees feel supported, empowered, and future-ready, technology becomes a catalyst for growth—not a threat. The future of work is not about choosing between humans and technology. It is about enabling humans to thrive with technology. In the end, it is not automation that determines the relevance of people, it is the willingness of organizations to invest in their learning, resilience, and potential.