Motivation theories have evolved throughout history, but they still seek to analyze all the elements that affect employee motivation. Although many theories sound logical and applicable, without empirical research confirming them they will not come to life in organizations. Motivation in the organization is dealt by the human resources department, which develops various reward systems in order to maintain and improve the work motivation of employees. At this uncertain time caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the work of human resources department employees has been significantly difficult. Employees in the organizations had to adjust to the new "normal" which required a new way of working and approaching the problems. Crisis management is present in almost all organizations, and it’s importance is more visible than ever. In crisis situations, crisis management can maintain the stability of the organization by responding in a timely manner, which is reflected on impact of the stress on employees. Stress is a big problem of today's organizations and the realization that a small number of organizations help their employees in solving is worrying. It is to be expected that owners and directors, especially after the negative consequences of COVID-19, will notice the importance of the mental and physical health of employees. The aim of this paper is to define the concepts of motivation, its development through history, organizational cultures, human resource management and its importance for medium enterprises, stress, organizational behavior and crisis management. For the purposes of the paper, an interview was conducted with the owner of a home for the elderly and infirm, and an anonymous survey on a sample of 43 health professionals. The results show that internal protocols and activities had a positive impact on employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, the survey found a small but important increase in employee motivation during the pandemic conducted.