Employees are the key to any organization and the entire business. No company can function without them, because they are the ones responsible for making sure that every job is done on time and with minimal errors. The main source of competitive advantage in modern business is the proper selection and motivation of employees, that is, human resource management. As human resource management was researched and developed, numerous theories of motivation were developed that explain and encourage the motivation of personnel from different experts' perspectives. There are content theories of motivation and process theories of motivation. Content theories of motivation are focused on the individual needs of employees and completely ignore job characteristics as a source of motivation for work. While process theories of motivation do not only include human needs, they also take into account factors such as expectations or perceptions of the individual. Namely, motivation is crucial for encouraging creativity and innovation of employees and for their professional development and retention in the organization. However, motivation is a very complex process because it differs for each individual and is influenced by various factors. Therefore, the manager must know employees well and distinguish motivation theories in order to be able to successfully apply them in any situation and ensure employee satisfaction and successful performance of work tasks. Building a high-quality motivational system leads to the achievement of organizational goals and success achieved by satisfied and motivated personnel.