This research focuses on the quality of life at work assumed in very small enterprises (VSEs). Our observations made in research-interventions do not always converge with the advantages often attributed to small firms. We seek to show that the small size of companies does not always allow for more fluid communication, a pleasant and responsive working environment, and a high degree of flexibility to respond to the vagaries of the environment or to meet customer demands. Intervention research can help structure and identify the reality of the supposed benefits of VSEs. Our paper analyzes six research-interventions in French VSEs to show the limits of their presumed benefits. We seek to enrich the analysis of VSEs, to better define the reality of the working context in small companies and to improve their social and economic performance, which we make the basis of the quality of life at work.
