{draw:g} {draw:g} {draw:g} {draw:frame} {draw:frame} Because motivation is strongly linked with organizations’ productivity, its management must be carefully taken into account to face rapidly changing environments and workplaces. Indeed, motivated employees are needed for an organization to survive. There are several ways to define motivation in a business context. In 1994, Higgins defined the concept of motivation as “an internal drive to satisfy an unsatisfied need”. Motivation was also defined in 1995 as “a predisposition to behave in a purposive manner to achieve specific, unmet needs” by Buford, Bedeian and Lindner. In most of the companies, the human resource management department mainly focuses on functional and operational aspects of the organization. Indeed, the HRM department often deals with evaluation of performance, incentive and training plans in priority. However, studies have shown that extrinsic factors such as wages, incentives, security and working environment are not enough to fully enhance employees’ motivation, involvement, initiatives and creativity. That is why human resource management must take intrinsic factors (“motivation factors”, HERZBERG) such as achievement, advancement to higher level tasks and responsibility for task into account and make the most of them. In realty, job enlargement and enrichment is the key process to enhance motivation in a company. But a question remains. On which of the theories based on motivation managers have to rely and how to adapt it to practical management? In a first part, I will present the main content theories and their implications for management. Secondly, I will analyze process theories and their implications for management. The last part will be dedicated to the presentation of the five characteristics of a motivational work. In the wide range of motivational theories, we can distinguish content theories from process theories. It is important to keep in mind that none of these