Now, some of you will doubtless be thinking I'm referring to those businesses which benefit directly from our annual 'love-fest' - card shops, jewellers, florists and chocolatiers - which is no surprise since last year a survey by Visa Commercial found a surge in consumer spending of up to 400% in these outlets in the run-up to 14 February.
But what I'd like to look at here is the bigger picture: the underlying psychology of giving anonymous gifts.
When Shakespeare said "love sought is good, but given unsought is better", he was expressing a fundamental human truth. It is a truth anthropologists and sociologists refer to as generalised reciprocity - sharing goods, labour or love without expecting anything in return. Indeed, what makes this sharing process reciprocal is simply the sense of satisfaction the giver feels, and the general feeling of goodwill it creates in the wider social group.
In today's industrialised societies, generalised reciprocity is a relative rarity found mainly between parents and children and between long-term partners. In other cultures, however, it can span entire societies, and in her novel, Pay It Forward, Catherine Ryan Hyde speculated on what would happen in a modern, Western community if someone did three people a favour - something the recipients couldn't do for themselves - and then told them not to 'pay it back', but to 'pay it forward' to three others who would, in turn, pay it forward to three more.
It's a compelling concept, but one which a character in the film adaptation describes as "overly utopian". However, in the spirit of Valentine's Day: is it?
Consider, for example, the relationships HR practitioners have with their suppliers which, for me, is split broadly into three types.
First, there's the commoditised relationship, a straightforward transaction with no emotional content. Success is a smooth process - and a low price.
Second is the conditional relationship where the interaction is defined and measured. Success is meeting the terms of the service level agreement and delivering on time and budget.
Then there's the unconditional relationship, where the HR practitioner and the supplier work in partnership to deliver for the organisation. It is fluid, allowing for other departments and suppliers to play their part; it is founded on honesty, trust and shared values; and client and supplier alike are engaged in a level of generalised reciprocity that enriches everything it touches.
Now, all of you can think of at least one example of a client- supplier relationship that falls into each of these categories. And the fact that we can all think of examples of unconditional relationships proves that the 'pay it forward'
concept isn't overly utopian - it's simply an expression of what happens when we decide to invest in our relationships. Because we also know that these are exactly the relationships which deliver the greatest value.
However, as we begin to emerge from the depths of the recession, it's clear that many of us - HR practitioners and suppliers alike - have lost focus on our investment in these long-term, sustainable, unconditional relationships. The very relationships we all need to turn around our prospects.
So, with Valentine's Day fast approaching, please allow me to share a thought with you.
After you've helped boost the turnover of the card shops, jewellers, florists and chocolatiers on your high street, spend a few moments considering how you might be able to make life a little bit easier for one of your key customers or suppliers - then pick up the phone and tell them. Because that one act of unconditional goodwill will repay you many, many times over.
David Fairhurst is senior vice-president/chief people officer, McDonald's Restaurants Northern Europe
