Only 8% of French employees report being engaged in their work. This figure, from the Gallup State of the Global Workplace 2025 report, places France 36th out of 38 European countries. Behind this alarming percentage lie teams doing their jobs without conviction, exhausted managers, and leaders of very small and small businesses who struggle to understand why their employees seem so disengaged despite their efforts. Motivating teams has never been so complex or so urgent. This article reviews the levers that actually work, those that disappoint, and the concrete tools for building sustainable momentum, even with limited resources.
Employee motivation is primarily an economic issue.
Motivation at work is not a matter of comfort or secondary well-being. It is a direct, measurable financial issue that weighs on the profitability of every organization, regardless of its size.
The true cost of disengagement
The Mozart Consulting Workplace Well-being Index (IBET), calculated on 19,5 million employees in the French private sector, estimates the average cost of disengagement at €14,840 per employee per year in 2024This represents a 32% increase since 2022. This amount includes absenteeism, presenteeism, negotiated departures, and the loss of productivity linked to silent disengagement. For a very small business with 15 employees, this theoretically represents over €220,000 in lost value each year, diluted in budget lines that no one ever links to motivation.
Presenteeism, often overlooked in calculations, weighs heavily on its own €14,840 per employee per year An employee who is physically present but mentally absent is not producing at their full capacity. They are managing their discomfort rather than creating value.
Globally, Gallup estimates that disengagement costs $438 billion in lost productivity in 2024 to the global economy. This figure could exceed $10 trillion if all indirect costs are included, representing 9% of global GDP. France is not spared: with only 8% of employees engaged, compared to a European average of 13% and a global average of 21%, France sadly stands out as one of the countries most affected by this phenomenon.
Turnover, an invisible cash leak
Employee turnover is often perceived as an "HR problem." In reality, it's a cash drain that accounting systems struggle to isolate. According to studies by APEC, DARES, and Harvard Business Review, The overall cost of a departure is between 0,5 and 2 times the gross annual salary of the position in question.For an account manager earning €42,000 gross, field estimates in SMEs show a real cost of around €27,500 per departure: vacancy of the position, skills development of the replacement, overload of the remaining team, time of the manager mobilized, and sometimes loss of client files.
In France, the average employee turnover rate across all sectors hovers around 15 to 16%, according to the latest consolidated data. Some sectors, such as restaurants and retail, commonly exceed 30%. A turnover rate of 15 to 20% in an SME can represent 1,5 to 3 months of annual payroll evaporatedOn a payroll of €500,000, this equates to €62,500 to €126,000 in hidden costs.
What makes the situation even more worrying is the so-called "Big Stay" phenomenon observed since 2024: resignations from permanent contracts are declining slightly (DARES, Q3 2025), not because employees are regaining enthusiasm, but because they are afraid of change. They stay, but without committing. This silent disengagement is often more costly than a clear departure because it is invisible and gradually affects the rest of the team.
This is a particularly acute issue for very small and small businesses.
Large companies have dedicated HR departments, wellness budgets, and structured engagement programs. Very small businesses (TPEs) and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), however, face the same challenges with far more limited resources. In 2024, one in two TPEs experienced a decline in revenue, and 78% of TPE managers were facing cash flow difficulties, according to the SDI survey of January 2025. Losing a key employee in this context can destabilize an entire organization.
This is precisely why motivational levers must be chosen carefully: some are expensive for a limited effect, others are almost free and produce lasting results.
Financial levers: useful but insufficient
Compensation remains the primary factor in attracting employees to a company, as cited by French workers. The WTW 2024 survey of French employees confirms this. Compensation and benefits are the top criteria for selection and retention.Regardless of gender, age, or sector. Ignoring this aspect would be a mistake. But limiting oneself to it would be another, perhaps more serious.
A fixed salary: necessary, but not sufficient
A below-market salary is an almost certain reason for leaving. A salary at the market average, on the other hand, is not a motivating factor: it simply means there is no reason to leave. Academic research clearly confirms this. A study published in 2024 in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, co-authored by Professor Jacques Forest of UQAM and conducted on a sample of 593 workers with access to their actual (not declared) salaries, concludes that Salary predicts virtually nothing in terms of motivation and well-being at work.On the other hand, having one's needs for autonomy, competence and belonging met has a "colossal" effect on engagement.
This does not mean that you should underpay your teams. It means that once a salary is deemed fair, increasing fixed compensation does not automatically improve work motivation.
Employee profit-sharing and participation: powerful tools, still underutilized
The law of November 29, 2023 on value sharing introduced a new obligation for companies with 11 to 49 employees: from January 1, 2025, any structure making a net taxable profit of at least 1% of its turnover for 3 consecutive financial years must put in place at least one value sharing scheme (profit-sharing, participation, value sharing bonus or contribution to an employee savings plan).
This is an opportunity that many very small and small businesses have not yet seized. According to a study by the VYV Group and Kantar (2024), 77% of the companies surveyed consider employee savings plans to be an important lever for their developmentHowever, only 40% of employers with a system in place have implemented it within the last five years. Even more revealing: 55% of companies have never heard of the ANI law on value sharingand only 13% feel they understand the existing systems well.
However, the advantages are real and tangible:
For the company: Profit-sharing payments are exempt from employer social security contributions (excluding the social security levy, which is itself eliminated for companies with fewer than 250 employees) and are deductible from taxable profit. For SMEs with fewer than 50 employees, employer contributions to a Company Savings Plan (PEE) are entirely exempt from the social security levy.
For the employee: Profit-sharing bonuses invested in a PEE (Employee Savings Plan) or PERCOL (Collective Retirement Savings Plan) are exempt from income tax and employee social security contributions (excluding CSG/CRDS). An employee who invests €500 in their PEE and benefits from a 300% employer matching contribution receives an additional €1,500 from their employer, without this being subject to social security contributions.
The value sharing bonus (formerly the Macron bonus) allows for the payment of up to €3,000 per employee per year (€6,000 if a profit-sharing agreement is in place), with exemption from social security contributions and income tax for employees earning less than 3 times the minimum wage in companies with fewer than 50 employees, for bonuses paid between 2024 and 2026.
The limitations of financial leverage
Despite their appeal, financial incentives have well-documented limitations. The Indeed/CensusWide study on the reasons for resignation among French employees reveals that Salary is only a motivating factor in 20% of resignations.Other reasons cited include lack of recognition (17%), the search for new challenges (18%), the mismatch between the position and aspirations (16%), or weariness due to being in the same position for too long (15%).
Furthermore, the 2024 United Heroes/OpinionWay survey of 5,478 employees shows that Working conditions and human relations are now just as important as remuneration. in the priorities of French employees. This is a major paradigm shift for the leaders of very small and small businesses who still thought that "paying well" was enough to retain their teams.
Non-financial levers: where motivation at work really comes into play
Non-financial drivers are often underestimated because they are less visible in balance sheets. Yet, these are the drivers that create lasting engagement, employee loyalty, and collective performance.
Recognition at work: the most powerful and cheapest lever
Recognition at work is consistently cited as one of the top factors in motivating and retaining talent. 83,6% of employees believe that recognition boosts their motivation, according to a study cited by Sociabble. 65% of employees surveyed in the OpinionWay/United Heroes 2024 study want more recognition from their manager or their company.
However, only 50% of French employees feel they are valued fairly, according to the 2024 Employee Experience Barometer (BaromEx), conducted among 1,207 employees in France. This figure reveals an untapped source of motivation, accessible without additional budget.
Recognition takes many forms:
Existential recognition It involves taking an interest in the person beyond their role, remembering a personal event, and taking the time for an informal exchange. This is the rarest and often the most impactful form.
Recognition of efforts : to value not only the results, but the work done, even when the result is not achieved. An employee who knows their efforts are noticed is more invested.
Recognition of results : to publicly or privately congratulate someone on a success, to share positive customer feedback, to celebrate a project delivered on time.
Recognition of skills : to entrust new responsibilities, to propose a training, to value the expertise of a collaborator within the team.
One of the most common mistakes is reducing recognition to isolated gestures or end-of-year congratulations. To be effective, it must be regular, sincere, and embedded in the daily management culture.
Autonomy: a fundamental need, not a luxury
Autonomy is one of the three fundamental psychological needs identified by self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan), alongside competence and belonging. According to Professor Jacques Forest, satisfying these three needs has a "colossal effect" on motivation and well-being at work, far greater than that of salary.
Field data confirms this reality. The ADP 2024 study of 2,000 French employees reveals that 87% of employees enjoy a high degree of autonomy in carrying out their tasks and that this element is "essential for engagement for a majority of them." The Jobmaker survey from July 2024 (1,000 current employees) supports this finding: 66% of employees prefer a high level of autonomyand 50% prefer a delegative management style.
For a manager of a very small or small business, this translates concretely into:
Meaning at work: a growing demand
According to the Great Place to Work France 2024 survey, 77% of employees believe that defining a mission or values is important for a companyMeaningful work is no longer the sole domain of large organizations with structured CSR policies. Employees of small businesses also need to understand why their work matters.
Giving meaning means connecting each mission to its concrete impact: on the client, on the team, on society. It means explaining strategic decisions rather than imposing them. It means involving employees in transformation projects rather than informing them after the fact. The Great Place to Work survey reveals that only 69% of employees report having been informed of the transformation projects and understanding them.and barely 51% were involved in their implementation. This lack of meaning directly fuels disengagement.
Flexibility: an asset that cannot be taken away
Flexibility in work organization (remote work, flexible hours, 4-day workweek) is now seen as a given by office workers. The WTW 2024 survey ranks it among the top three factors in attracting French employees, alongside salary and purpose. The United Heroes 2024 study is even more direct: Lack of flexibility is cited as the primary reason why office workers are considering leaving their company..
However, be aware of the potential downsides of unsupported teleworking: 41% of teleworkers report feeling a sense of isolation39% of employees do not feel a sense of belonging to their company while working remotely. Therefore, flexibility must be accompanied by collective rituals and increased managerial attention to maintain connections.
Future prospects: building loyalty by opening up new horizons
According to the Révélatis survey conducted with 128 respondents (managers and employees), 72,4% of employees identify job advancement or internal mobility opportunities as a key driver of engagement.. However, 62,1% explicitly expect concrete development opportunities from their manager.
For a very small or small-to-medium-sized enterprise (SME), offering career development opportunities doesn't necessarily mean creating management positions. It can take the form of developing skills in a new area, participating in a cross-functional project, or taking on responsibility for a specific client or project. The goal is to show each employee that they can grow within the organization, rather than having to leave to advance.
The role of the line manager: 70% of engagement depends on him
Gallup states this in each of its editions, and the 2025 and 2026 data confirm it even more strongly: 70% of a team's engagement is directly attributable to the direct managerThis statistical constant is one of the most robust findings of research on work motivation. It has considerable implications for very small and small businesses, where the manager is often the first point of contact for employees.
A role under pressure
Manager engagement is plummeting. According to the Gallup 2025 report, global manager engagement fell from 30% to 27%. The 2026 report shows a further drop to 22%, a 5-point decrease in just one year, an unprecedented decline. In France, 71% of managers surveyed in the Ayming/AG2R LA MONDIALE 2023 Barometer report experiencing significant stress. Stressed managers are twice as likely to be absent, and their disengagement directly impacts their teams.
The 2024 IFOP/Axys survey of 1,001 French managers reveals a striking paradox: 75% of managers are satisfied with their professional situationMore 57% report not having the resources to recognize the performance of their employees35% feel their own work is not sufficiently recognized. A manager who feels invisible struggles to make their employees visible.
Feedback: an underutilized lever
According to Gallup, 80% of employees who receive constructive feedback at least once a week are engaged.This figure is spectacular. Yet, in the reality of very small and small businesses, feedback is often limited to the annual review, which 48% of employees consider to be "the worst moment of the year" (Zest study).
Effective feedback isn't an annual performance review. It's a regular, informal exchange focused on specific tasks. It could take the form of a 15-minute weekly check-in, immediate feedback after a presentation, or a thank-you message after a well-handled project. The key is consistency and sincerity.
The Révélatis survey highlights a worrying gap in perception: 100% of managers say they clearly state expectations, while only 55,5% of employees confirm thisThis 45-point difference reveals that managerial communication is often perceived as vague or incomplete, even when the manager believes they have been clear.
Active listening: the most sought-after skill
The Lead Opinion 2024 study of 2,000 French employees identifies the top three expectations of employees towards their manager:
These three expectations are all relational. None are technical. They indicate that the most expected skill of a frontline manager is not mastery of a tool or process, but their ability to be present, to listen, and to value.
The Michael Page investigation points in the same direction: 72,5% of employees believe that respect is the most expected quality of a managerfollowed by listening (68%) and leadership (41%).
Leading by example: the manager is a mirror
Gallup puts it clearly: "Employees are a reflection of their leaders." A manager who arrives late, fails to meet commitments, or criticizes management in team meetings sends a strong signal about acceptable behavior. Conversely, a manager who acknowledges their mistakes, protects their team from external pressures, and dedicates time to helping a struggling employee creates an environment where engagement can flourish.
Leading by example isn't about perfection. It's about consistency between what you say and what you do. In a very small business or SME where teams are small and interactions are daily, this consistency is even more visible, and its absence even more destructive.
Measuring and maintaining motivation: warning signs, interviews and eNPS
Motivating your teams without measuring their level of engagement is like navigating blindly. Signs of disengagement are often present long before an employee resigns. Detecting them early allows you to act before the situation becomes irreversible.
Warning signs not to be ignored
Several behaviors signal an emerging disengagement. Taken individually, they are inconclusive. It is their combination and persistence that lead to a diagnosis:
At the individual level: gradual decline in the quality and quantity of work without operational explanation, disappearance of initiatives and proposals, withdrawal from informal exchanges and collective time, cynical or negative attitude towards the organization, visible update of LinkedIn profile, unusual absences on Friday or Monday.
At the collective level: rise in the rate of voluntary departures around a manager, increase in micro-absenteeism, deteriorating annual review results for several people in the same area, increasing difficulty in recruitment (sign that the employer reputation is beginning to deteriorate).
Regular individual interviews: the simplest and most effective tool
The annual performance review remains useful, but it is not enough. It is too infrequent to detect early warning signs, and 95% of managers consider it ineffective according to Deloitte, often due to a lack of appropriate training.
What truly makes the difference is the regular one-on-one meeting, monthly or bi-monthly, focused on the work experience. A simple question asked sincerely in a trusting environment provides more information than any HR metric: "How are you experiencing your job right now? Are there things that are preventing you from doing a good job or that are weighing you down?"
For those under 35, 86% believe that a modernized and better-conducted annual review could significantly boost their loyalty and motivation (Zest study). It is not the format that is the problem, it is the quality of the relationship that underlies it.
Stay interviews are also a powerful yet underutilized tool: they involve regularly asking employees what motivates them to stay and what might make them leave. This frank conversation, conducted before their departure, helps identify pain points before they become reasons for resignation.
The eNPS: Taking the pulse of engagement in one question
The Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) is a simple, quick, and comparable indicator over time. It is based on a single question asked of employees: "On a scale of 0 to 10, would you recommend your company as a place to work?"
The respondents fall into three categories:
The score is calculated as follows: eNPS = % Promoters – % DetractorsIt varies from -100 to +100.
In France, the national eNPS measured by Lead Opinion in 2024 is -9 pointswith 30% detractors and only 21% supporters. In 2026, the Lead Opinion Observatory recorded a further decline. -7 points, in a context where motivation falls to 72% (-3 points) and satisfaction with the employer drops to 69% (-5 points).
The 2025-2026 sector benchmarks provide useful indicators: an eNPS below -10 is a warning sign with a high risk of turnover, between 0 and +20 is a healthy range, and above +30 is an excellent result. An eNPS that improves from +5 to +15 in 12 months is a better signal than a stable eNPS at +30.
The recommended frequency is quarterly The surveys should be frequent enough to detect shifts and measure the impact of actions without overwhelming respondents. An annual eNPS is too infrequent to identify weak signals. Three levers can be used to improve it quickly: transparent communication about actions resulting from the results, a peer recognition program, and coaching to strengthen frontline managers. These three actions can improve the eNPS by 10 to 15 points in 6 months, according to Pulse/Gallup data.
Simplify daily life with the right tools: less paperwork, more engagement
A frequently overlooked motivator in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is the quality of work tools. An employee who spends their days juggling Excel spreadsheets, unfiled emails, manual follow-ups, and tools that don't communicate with each other cannot be fully engaged. Operational frustration is a slow poison for work motivation.
The burden of administrative tasks on engagement
According to Djaboo data, very small and small businesses juggle an average of 6 different tools. The result: scattered data, wasted time, decisions made in the dark, and employees spending a significant portion of their time on low-value tasks rather than their core business.
France Num, the official portal for the digital transformation of businesses, believes that automating repetitive tasks can free up more than 4 hours per week per employee. This newfound time can be reinvested in higher value-added activities: customer relations, innovation, team collaboration. All of these activities foster a sense of competence and purpose, two of the three fundamental needs for motivation at work.
Djaboo: a tool designed for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) teams
Djaboo was designed precisely to meet this need. Djaboo is an all-in-one solution that combines CRM, invoicing, project management, cash flow, time tracking, and customer ticketing in a single interface, designed for teams of 1 to 100 employees and more.
In practical terms, Djaboo allows you to:
The Djaboo Starter plan is available at 0 € per month (Up to 3 users), no credit card required, with a 14-day trial of advanced features. Migration of existing data is assisted and free, and most users send their first quote within 30 minutes of signing up.
By reducing the administrative burden on teams, Djaboo frees up time and mental energy for what truly matters: high-value work, customer relationships, and collaboration. Less operational friction means less frustration, and therefore more room for motivation at work.
FAQ: Frequently asked questions about employee motivation in very small and small businesses
How to motivate your teams without increasing salaries?
Salary isn't the only motivator at work. Regular recognition, autonomy in tasks, clear objectives, career advancement opportunities, and high-quality management are powerful and often free motivators. According to an Indeed survey, only 20% of resignations are motivated by salary. Focusing on the remaining 80% is often more effective than a general raise.
What are the first signs of demotivation to watch out for?
The most common warning signs are: an unexplained decline in work quality, withdrawal from informal interactions and initiatives, a cynical or negative attitude, unusual absences, and a noticeable update to the LinkedIn profile. These signs, taken individually, are not sufficient to draw conclusions. It is their combination and persistence that should raise concern.
What is eNPS and how do you implement it in a small business?
The eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score) is an engagement indicator based on a single question: "On a scale of 0 to 10, would you recommend your company as a workplace?" The score is calculated by subtracting the percentage of detractors (scores 0-6) from the percentage of promoters (scores 9-10). It can be measured anonymously and quarterly via a simple Google form or a dedicated tool. In France, the national eNPS is currently -7 points (Lead Opinion, 2026).
How to retain employees in a context of limited budget?
Employee retention depends first and foremost on the quality of their daily experience. According to the WTW 2024 survey, 42% of employees would be willing to change companies for a better benefits policy., with equivalent remuneration. Levers accessible without a large budget include: flexible hours, regular recognition, frequent individual interviews, transparency on company strategy, and the implementation of a profit-sharing agreement (possible by unilateral decision in companies with fewer than 50 employees).
What is the manager's role in employee engagement?
According to Gallup, 70% of a team's engagement is directly attributable to the immediate manager. One in two employees leaves their job because of their manager, according to a Robert Walters study. The three most sought-after skills in a manager are listening and support (46%), respect and kindness (45%), and encouragement (39%), according to the Lead Opinion 2024 study. Training and supporting frontline managers is therefore the investment with the highest return on engagement in a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME).
