Objectives:
The aim of the article is to present the results of research on the motivators that encourage employees to engage in continuous improvement (CI) processes in manufacturing companies in Poland. The study is a continuation of the authors' earlier work and aimed to determine the gaps between expectations and the actual use of individual motivational instruments in the practice of organizations implementing Lean/Kaizen strategies.

Material and methods:
The study was conducted in 2022–2023 using the CAWI method on a comfortable sample of 161 respondents (72 managers and 89 ordinary employees) from companies using CI. An author's questionnaire containing 25 modified motivating factors (based on literature and previous research) was used. Respondents indicated the motivators used and expected and assessed their motivational strength (scale 0–3).

Results:
The preferences of both groups (managers and employees) turned out to be surprisingly similar (no statistically significant differences in the top positions). In practice, as many as 7 out of 8 most highly anticipated factors are used significantly below expectations, and only the possibility of submitting opinions is sufficiently (even excessively) implemented. The hierarchy of preferences remains stable over time compared to pre-2020 surveys.

Conclusions:
The results indicate a clear disproportion between the declared expectations of employees and the actual use of preferred motivators in Polish enterprises – especially in terms of financial and intangible rewards for personal commitment and good organization of the suggestion and feedback system. A small difference of opinion between the levels suggests that the problem lies not in the discrepancy of perception, but in the insufficient implementation of known good practices.