What message are you sending?

Here's an interesting post about London Heathrow's new Terminal 5 (the subject of an earlier blog on this site).  Put aside any thoughts about the building's functionality (or lack thereof) and think instead about what Peter Knapp of Landor is saying should matter most: How well does the building reflect on the city it serves?

Now, I'm sure the people who designed and marketed Terminal 5 thought they were doing a good job.  But is what Knapp concludes really what Londoners would like others to conclude about their city?

Apply this analytic lens to your school or business.  See it through the eyes of someone who has never seen it before.  How well does it reflect what your organization aspires to be?  What would someone conclude about you, based solely on what they can see while wandering around the site?  Maybe convene a focus group of people who have never seen your school, give them each a clipboard and ask them to wander around (most assuredly not as part of a guided tour) and then record what they think your buildings, grounds, and so forth say.  Might be illuminating, to say the least.