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Jacques Couelle's Most Spectacular Interiors
By: Author Liz Mclellan
Categories Architecture
It is quite common to receive inspiration from the organic forms and beauty of nature, but self-taught French architect Jacques Couëlle took this inspiration one step further than most. His work on the Castellaras estate in Mouans-Sartoux, France blurs the line between nature, architecture, and sculptural art– hence the unique architectural style he is said to have initiated: Architecture-Sculpture.
Who is Jacques Couëlle?
Jacques Couelle's 10 Most Spectacular Interiors
1.Domaine de Castellaras, in Mouans-Sartoux
2. Villa Goupil in Chevreuse
3. Hotel Cala di Volpe (1962) in Sardinia
4. The Standing Stones House, Louveciennes, France
5. Villa Oxygen, Cannes
6. Dragon Hill, Cannes
Who was Savin Couelle?
What is Architectural Sculpture?
Jacques Couëlle is a self-taught architect. Uncategorised, he remains on the margins of major movements in architecture and in particular the Modern Movement. In 1946 he founded "the Research Centre of natural structures". Nicknamed "the architect of billionaires" he has made exceptional homes. The architecture of Jacques Couëlle, with its sculptural forms of concrete designed and carved, evokes the movement of architecture-sculpture born after the war.
The specificity of Couëlle's architecture is its relationship to nature. His houses fit perfectly into their natural environment because they borrow their forms. They are "home-landscape". This relationship with nature is associated with Antoni Gaudí's organic architecture like the famous Park Güell (1900–1914) in Barcelona, where the paths carved into the slope as caves follow the contours of the land. An eccentric character, he was a friend of Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí. For his artistic merits, he was awarded the Legion of Honour at the French Academy. He worked together with his son Savin Jacques Couëlle (1929–2020).
For Couëlle, it was unthinkable to modify the land in order to build his home-landscapes. On the contrary, the different levels and curves of the façades follow the natural slope while the windows and doors are positioned in relationship to the surrounding landscape and the orientation of the sun. Born in Marseille, the architect did not draw up plans, but rather created plaster models directly that the workers were tasked with reproducing in real life. Rumour has it that he even asked his clients to visit the site before the works began to walk the future rooms and ensure the fluid movement from one to another before fixing the contours.
Only 5 clients were sufficiently visionary to commission a house from the architect, yet today their homes are considered extraordinary architectural manifestos
Completed in 1962, Couëlle designed five homes in this south-east French city using instinctive free forms that almost blended in with their landscapes. He achieved this harmony by adapting the design of the homes to the terrain, instead of the other way around. The natural slopes of the land dictated the different levels inside and the curves in the facades, while the sun dictated the locations of the windows and other openings. The rough white walls seem as if they were hewn from stone, and the irregular curved ceilings and arches create the sensation of living in a grotto or upscale cave. These organic shapes stood as a stark contrast to the angular modernism of the time, as Couëlle believed right angles and harsh lines "provoked human anxiety".
Inside, curved ceilings, arches and an open fireplace have been left purposefully irregular, and are contrasted by details also designed by the self-taught architect – including a bronze mural that conceals doors to the kitchen and cellar. A deep-set porthole-style window offers views across the nearby bay, while other windows are set behind clefts in the house's exterior, or feature decorative geometric steel coverings.
He also had a unique step in his process, which he called Tristan's test. He would cover the ground with sand, roughly sketch the outlines of the main spaces, and ask his clients to come mimic their daily lives. He then used the depths of the steps in the sand as a guideline to create the volumes of the spaces, according to their various levels and frequency of interaction. Typically, the living room served as a starting point around which the other rooms would unfold. The picture below serves as a perfect example, with the large central fireplace serving as the focal point around which the rest of the space flows. Couëlle used an eclectic combination of stone, terra cotta, ceramics, wood, glass, iron, and copper as his materials and finishes. He incorporated touches of color in a beautiful thick stained glass window and a room with harlequin-style tiled floors. The window coverings and other areas incorporated decorative creations made of iron and steel.
Chevreuse. North of France, 40km from the dynamic and lively Paris. It was here that we discovered an oasis of escape that seems almost purpose built for relaxation and reflection. Villa Goupil was designed and built in the late 1960's, with the World Fair theme of 'World of Tomorrow' echoing in the minds of designers worldwide. Leading to futuristic and almost ethereal design choices, the property is the brainchild of Jacques Couëlle, a self taught architect who rebelled against the modernist movement's rigid and mechanical forms. The house was almost one with nature. The carved, curving concrete exterior borrows its shape and form from the surrounding forest, with a movement and fluidity that defies and contradicts the nature of the materials.
It is a surreal place, but of course, this was expected of an architect who was close friends with Picasso and Dali! It is as if you are walking through a fairytale or the set of a movie, it almost didn't feel real. Looking outwards, you are met with the view of lush forest and further onwards, a divine vista of quaint and quintessential French village life as far as the eye can see.The immersion in nature and the unobtrusive architecture and design leads to an all encompassing tranquility. Its deep serenity makes for the quintessential setting for some serious introspection and thought, ideal for overcoming any form of writer's or imagination block. With a lack of distraction from the outside world, it makes anyone want to fully immerse themselves in the moment. To stop. Take it all in for a slight moment. Above everything, this property brings to the table all of the style and practicality of classic mid-century architecture. The design choices have been carefully curated to provide aesthetically pleasing features without sacrificing any of the creature comforts that you would expect of modern European luxury.
The swimming pool is the central 'organ' to this house. From both floors it takes precedence, and can be experienced through the glass windows. Working in autonomy with its surroundings, his designs hinted at fluidity and movement, contradictory to the nature of the materials he worked with. While his work always serviced the imagination, it was at times regarded as rudimentary by critics of the time who likened them to caveman-like designs – despite the billionaire backers who invested in them.
The scenic Cala di Volpe bay is located in the north of Sardinia. It's part of the Costa Smeralda, AKA Emerald Coast, famous for its white-sand beaches, exclusive hotels, and ability to attract celebrities and other affluent visitors. The place is so special that The Spy Who Loved Me, a James Bond film, used this resort town for some of its scenes. Hotel Cala di Volpe is the town's landmark, the famous French architect Jacques Couëlle's work. His architectural movement focused on the importance of blending in with nature and sculptural forms of carved concrete surfaces. Thanks to his brilliant work, Hotel Cala di Volpe has been open to guests since 1962.
In March of 1962 a group of Sardinian landowners including the Aga Khan formed the Consorzio Costa Smeralda, with the objective to carefully develop a tourism infrastructure on the island. Throughout the 1960s The Cala di Volpe became he new hub for high society during the summer months. Then, in the 1990s The Aga Khan's Italian company Fimbar was in deep financial trouble. He had to give up the control of CIGA and its hotels in six countries, which also included the hotels along the Costa Smeralda. By 1994 Sheraton took over the Cala di Volpe. Evetually the American real estate kings Starwood would venture into tourism and buy the whole lot.
The cave-like interiors feature curvy walls in white-washed and terracotta color palettes. The friendly Mediterranean style creates a laid-back atmosphere, complementing the secluded town's unique feel. The rooms and suites were cautiously upgraded by Bruno Moinard with the utmost respect to Jacques Couëlle's original works. The rooms and suites have thoughtful natural decorations like Sardinian baskets and wooden canopies. Some are equipped with freestanding bathtubs overlooking the bay. Of course, the most luxurious is the Penthouse Suite, with its own rooftop terrace with a pool. What's more, it also has a steam room, fitness room, hot tub, and uniquely made furniture.
Hotel Cala di Volpe offers a culinary journey through its various restaurants and bars, ranging from Mediterranean flavors at the Barbecue Restaurant to Japanese cuisine at Matsuhisa at Cala di Volpe. The spa is the signature work of the Japanese brand Shiseido offering treatments inspired by the fusion of Eastern traditions and philosophies and Western science and technology. The unique Spa Journey features Kuroho, a rare fragrance of the Japanese aristocracy from the 9th century. Step outside, and you'll find the hotel's Olympic size pool, one of the largest in Europe, filled with seawater. If you are looking for relaxation in a serene place, a 5-minute boat ride will get you to a private beach with perfect white sands and turquoise waters.
Bruno Moinard and Claire Bétaille, experienced in the art of the revival of prestigious hotels (Plaza Athénée in Paris, Four Seasons Trinity Square in London, Eden in Rome), have cast their singular gaze on this habitable work of art that needed to be rethought and relit, while respecting the original creative action of Couëlle.
After four years of work, the mythical Cala di Volpe hotel, on the Costa Smeralda, in Sardinia, welcomes its visitors with more brilliance than ever. It is the symbol of the creative genius of Jacques Couëlle, the great architect who invented the 'sculpture-houses', which appear raw and buried in their environment but are extremely refined in form. Intimately associating nature and simple luxury, it perfectly corresponds to our time and its aspirations. They wanted to keep the soul of the place intact, and loved adapting to the empire of materials reigning supreme here: the powerfully sculpted plaster which reserves havens of freshness, the barely civilsed wood which punctuates the structures and visual effect, the thick glass in colour compositions that filters the unique light of the bay, the warm silky terracotta underfoot, the skilfully reinvented fabrics. The furniture, for the most part, was custom-designed and often mobilised local know-how.
LOCATED 30 MINUTES FROM THE center of Paris, this house is in an area that was once the hunding ground of French kings. The home was given the name – les pierres levées– which translates roughly as 'Standing Stones' and is known for its scultpural forms of concrete, evoking an outsider movement of architecture and sculpture born after the second World War. Jacques Couëlle sought to integrate his architecture in the landscape thus giving this home its organic modern exterior, though the interiors are decidedly more traditional.
On the hillside of Super-Cannes, with a magnificent sea view is the deluxe Villa Oxygene on the French Riviera. A ten-minute drive from the excitement and glamour of classic Riviera resort centers such as Cannes and Antibes, Villa Oxygene offers a true retreat, inviting guests to a quieter environment. Designed by a renowned French architect, Jacques Couëlle, the Villa was built with privileged luxury in mind, and offers its residents the absolute best of everything.
Just ten minutes from the beach and 30 minutes from Nice, the two-story house features a spacious reception room, a large living room that opens onto an outdoor terrace, and a modern kitchen. Five bedrooms, including the master suite, complete the living quarters. The spacious pool deck offers breathtaking views of the Mediterranean Sea, and a large garden provides room to roam under clear blue skies.
Authentic sculpted architecture, or architecture of instinct, this magnificent achievement from 1962, classified as a 20th Century Heritage, is one of the five "landscape houses" by architect Jacques Couëlle, an exceptional example of the movement of architecture-sculpture, acclaiming forms organic and rounded, inspired and integrated perfectly into nature, in opposition to the "right angles" of the modern movement of the time.
Located in a unique private and secure domain on the heights of Cannes, it enjoys absolute calm and an unobstructed view of the bay of Napoule and the Estérel massif.
Developing a living area of 300 m², on a landscaped plot of 5000 m², the neutral base of the shuttering and sprayed concrete frame was an ideal "playground" to give free rein to the creation of artist craftsmen to create such a varied composition. that incredible form and raw materials. Raw stone in warm and varied colors as well as marble for the floors, ceramics, iron and glass for the walls, wood and glass for the doors, copper to dress the facade details. The spaces, mostly on one level, develop like a star around the magnificent patio: the bright living room communicating with lush nature through large openings is complemented by an intimate and colorful reading room. On the opposite side, the kitchen as well as three bedrooms with their uniquely original bathrooms and a laundry room complete the ground floor. The first floor is accessed by two internal staircases adorned with colored terracotta tiles and illuminated by the glass pavers in primary colors so characteristic of the architect's works. The large upstairs entrance gives symmetrical access to two bedrooms each with bathroom and access to the roof terrace with spectacular views of the landscape and other surrounding landscaped houses. The outdoor spaces are characterized by the view of nature and the varied shapes of the house, by various terraces and clearances offering varied living spaces ending in the east on the swimming pool without vis-à-vis and the large contemplating park. the distant view of the Cannes region and the sea.
A large carport and various parking lots complete this extraordinary work. 5 minutes from shops, 10 minutes from Cannes, 40 minutes from Nice international airport.
Following in the footsteps of his illustrious father, the architect Jacques Couelle, Savin Couelle cultivated from the 1960s the same harmonious relationship with nature, the same organic approach. If Savin Couelle was born in France, in Aix-en-Provence, it was in Italy that he decided to spend his life, and more precisely in Sardinia, an island he fell in love with. After studying architecture at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, Savin Couelle moved to Madrid where he assisted the decorator Georges Wakhévitch on numerous shoots. He worked for seven years as a decorator for the cinema until his father, the architect Jacques Couelle, called on him in the early 1960s to help build the Cala di Volpe hotel on the Costa Smeralda. This project made him decide to settle in Porto Cervo and marked the beginning of a long collaboration between the two men who were to design a multitude of villas along the Sardinian coast designed to blend perfectly into the environment, according to the principles of organic architecture. Over the years, Savin Couelle assembled a team of handpicked craftsmen whom he trained himself, and who unfailingly accompanied him on each project.
Far from seeking to domesticate nature, Couelle preferred to follow its contours. For this, he favoured above all natural and local materials such as stone or wood, and eliminated lines and angles in favour of curves. He very much followed in the footsteps of his father, yet also clearly brought his own unique touch to his creations.
Architectural sculpture is the use of sculptural techniques by an architect and/or sculptor in the design of a building, bridge, mausoleum or other such project. The sculpture is usually integrated with the structure, but freestanding works that are part of the original design are also considered to be architectural sculpture. The concept overlaps with, or is a subset of, monumental sculpture. Architectural Sculpture dates back to ancient times. Modern understanding of ancient Egyptian architecture is based mainly on the religious monuments that have survived since antiquity, which are carved stone with post and lintel construction. These religious monuments dedicated to the gods or pharaohs were designed with a great deal of architectural sculpture inside and out: engaged statues, carved columns and pillars, and wall surfaces carved with bas-reliefs. The classic examples of Egyptian colossal monuments (the Great Sphinx of Giza, the Abu Simbel temples, the Karnak Temple Complex, etc.) represent thoroughly integrated combinations of architecture and sculpture.
Then, Classical Greek architecture, like the prototypical Parthenon, incorporate architectural sculpture in a fairly narrow set of standard, formal building elements. The names of these elements still comprise the usual vocabulary for discussion: the pediment, metope, frieze, caryatid, quadriga, acroteria, etc. Greek examples of architectural sculpture are distinguished not only by their age but their very high quality and skilful technique, with rhythmic and dynamic modelling, figural compositions in friezes that continue seamlessly over vertical joints from one block of stone to the next, and mastery of depth and legibility.
Not until about 1870 did the U.S. develop the talent, the economic power, and the taste for buildings grand enough to need architectural sculpture. The Philadelphia City Hall, constructed 1871 through 1901, is recognized as the turning point, because of the approximately 250 sculptures planned for the building, the large finial of William Penn, and the practical effect of Alexander Milne Calder training many assistants there. In the same years, H.H. Richardson began to develop his influential signature genre, which included romantic, medieval, and Romanesque stone carving. Richard Morris Hunt became the first to bring the Parisian neo-classical École des Beaux-Arts style back to the United States, a style that depended on integrated figural sculpture and a highly ornamented building fabric for its aesthetic effect. The Beaux-Arts style dominated for major public buildings between the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, through about 1912, the year of the San Francisco City Hall. The need for sculptors saw the emergence of a small industry of carvers and modelers, and a professional organization, the National Sculpture Society.
While Couelle's architecture is certainly sculptural, it doesn't neatly fit in any one category. I myself see it as very much aesthetically part of the organic architecture movement, but in some ways it was also before its time. Couelle integrates architecture with sculpture in a fluid and seamless way that is quite rare. While Couëlle's architecture-sculpture had many critics during its time, his works are now labeled as a Heritage of the 20th Century. In 1998, architect André Wogenscky perfectly described the unique beauty of Couëlle's work: "The architecture of Jacques Couëlle is a celebration of the earth. In the evening, when the day slowly slides out of our eyes and escapes, the houses of Jacques Couëlle enter the earth again to be confused with it. And each morning when the sky lights up, they seem to emerge from the ground and be reborn, like a daily fertilization of the earth. "
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The Commandments of "Saul"
As we explore the character marks of Saul and David, we are actually discovering how to be an overcomer. No one knows who will ultimately be in the overcomer group. The overcomers are the elite. Yet it is the paradoxical nature of God's plan that it is generally not the high and mighty of the world, but the meek and the humble who are more qualified to be overcomers. The way up is down. To be a ruler in God's kingdom, one must become a true servant. To be among the elite, one must become "lowly in heart," as the Savior was.
As we look at Saul and David and think of how this applies on the individual level, we all want to be in the David group. Nobody wants to be a Saul. When we each look at our own life, we can point to one or more people and identify them as being "a Saul" to us. It may be a family member; it may be our boss; it may be somebody in the church; it can be anybody. We will see how to identify Sauls as we study further into the story and see the character marks of Saul.
Although we can accurately identify some of the Sauls in our own life, if the full truth be known, we might be shocked to learn that just maybe that person who is a "Saul" to me or you will look upon himor herself as a David and see you or me as a Saul to himself. The humbling thing is...there may be some truth to that as well.
We all have some of the character marks of Saul in us. But as we strive to be more like David and Jesus, we always recognize that only God knows who the true overcomers are. Therefore, if from time to time, we refer to ourselves as overcomers, it must always be understood that it simply means we are all aspiring overcomers. We never claim to actually have attained that blessing.
Thus far in our study, David has not yet appeared on the scene. It was not too long into the reign of Saul—only in the second year—when he made his first major error. The story is told in 1 Samuel 13. The Philistines were amassing to attack Israel. In these early years, Saul is a firm believer in Yahweh and in his power to deliver Israel from their enemies.
The prophet Samuel had given the king the word from Yahweh to wait seven days until Samuel arrived, whereupon Samuel would offer sacrifice for success against the Philistines. On the seventh day, Saul was growing fearful of both the imminent strike by the Philistines and by the fact that many of his men were leaving camp for home. Too impatient, Saul took it upon himself to proceed with the sacrifice without Samuel. Big mistake! When Samuel arrived late on the seventh day, he excoriated Saul and pronounced Yahweh's judgment on him:
1 Samuel 13:13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of YHWH thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would YHWH have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever.
14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue: YHWH hath sought him a man after his own heart, and YHWH hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which YHWH commanded thee.
Thus what could have been a royal dynasty for Saul and his descendants was now a shattered dream. Saul's disobedience to God had brought about this sentence and with it the promise that Yahweh would replace him with David (although David is not actually named at this time).
Meanwhile, not waiting for the Philistines to attack, Jonathan takes his armor-bearer and stages a two-man commando raid upon the Philistine garrison. It creates panic among them and they begin slaughtering one another. While the Philistines are retreating back to their homeland in panic, Saul's armies join in the rout, but they are weak and exhausted from lack of food. Saul, knowing that a leader is expected to "do something," had decreed that everyone would fast that day in the hope that God would be pleased to grant them victory on that account. Not having been present to hear the decree, Jonathan finds great quantities of honey all over the land and begins to eat. Saul, meanwhile, not knowing whether to continue the chase of the Philistines, inquires of the Lord in the matter. When he receives no answer, he attributes it to someone having disobeyed his commandment about fasting and is ready to put the culprit to death, even if it turns out to be Jonathan. But Saul is unable to enforce the decree due to the howls of protest from the people for the hero Jonathan.
The foregoing is a much abbreviated account of the story in 1 Samuel 14. Aside from being a record of an actual event in the history of Israel, what meaning could it have for us today? The apostle Paul tells us that the Old Testament stories are types and shadows for our admonition and learning (1 Corinthians 10:11). We remember that Saul is representative of the church as a whole, but especially of church leadership, during the age of Pentecost, the "church age." That is the corporate level. And as noted above, on the personal level, we all have individual Sauls in our lives.
On the personal level, the heathen symbolize all the weaknesses, frailties and character flaws of our body, soul and spirit in the fallen state. Many Bible teachers in the past have recognized that the Philistines in particular symbolize the carnal or flesh nature. The giants are our five senses. Goliath was only one giant. Did you know he had four brothers? We can develop that theme at a later time.
At the time of this story, the children of Israel have their first king, Saul, and they begin to try to shake off the Philistines. Symbolically, this is battling the flesh nature. But can they be completely successful under Saul the Pentecostal? No, they cannot be. In the same way, we have had a Christian church under a Pentecostal anointing for nearly the past two millennia, and it cannot perfect us either.
One could say we are doomed to failure under Pentecost; but yet it would not be proper to use the phrase "doomed to failure" because it is all part of the divine plan. We must go this way; it is part of the process of perfection. But it is not all fun and games! The realm of Pentecost on a personal level for an aspiring overcomer is fraught with many trials and tribulations.
We have identified Saul as being self-willed and disobedient, impatient and impulsive. And now he makes this very foolish and rash oath or vow which nearly results in him executing his own son. Here is our first example of a Saul-type causing a great trial for an aspiring overcomer.
Was Saul's oath or curse something that God had told him to do? No, he was simply being impulsive. Then why did Saul make such a foolish vow? We can make some educated guesses. Being impulsive, Saul-type leaders are easily excitable and emotionally high-strung. They are more prone to act before they think. They are impetuous. Someone could point out that Jonathan's bold attack on the Philistines means he must have inherited some of those same qualities as well. Yes, that could be; but the difference is that Jonathan was less self-willed, more inclined to seek and obey the will of the Lord. He is associated with the overcomers, while his father is stuck in the Pentecost realm, unable to envision Tabernacles.
Perhaps an underlying or subconscious reason why Saul made the vow is simply to show off. By that I mean that, being the king and all, he feels the need to do or say something. …to be on stage, to be the center of attention, to continuously or regularly let the people know that he's in charge and he is in control. This really points to a great inner insecurity being masked by these outward actions and pronouncements. This kind of behavior often results in harm to the people, especially to those who are prospective overcomers.
We can see this on a corporate level throughout church history. We have mentioned the general principle before. That since the church under Pentecost was symbolized by wheat mixed with leaven, that we would find both great good and great evil in church history. Perfection does not come until the age of Tabernacles. Since we are discussing the character of Saul and not David at this point, we will note how the spirit of Saul, and the character marks of Saul, have manifested in the evil in church history.
Not to pick on the church of Rome exclusively, but since they were basically the only game in town for a millennium or more, they come to mind first. Space precludes quoting any more than a morsel of history here. Unfortunately, it seems that most Christians today are woefully ignorant of church history. Just to get a glimpse of the Saul character— the wheat mixed with leaven—character of the church, I would encourage readers to read the 50-page outline of church history in the back of Halley's Bible Handbook. It provides a very clear understanding of why that period is called the Dark Ages. There was every type of wickedness imaginable going on in the corridors of church politics. It is King Saul to a tee.
Furthermore, like Saul, the hierarchy of the church made decrees and church laws and new commandments for the people, not because they heard them from the Lord but primarily because they felt they needed to bolster their own authority. They were impulsive. They were insecure in that authority—as well they should have been—for like Saul, they were not chosen to be an everlasting dynasty.
An important point to remember in all this is that just as King Saul became a persecutor of David, so the Saul church were specialists in persecuting overcomer candidates. Anyone who did not agree with the doctrines promulgated by Rome was declared a heretic, tracked down and put to death, preferably, by burning at the stake. Since their teaching including a burning hellfire, they figured God would not mind if they simply "helped" Him get a head start on punishing the heretic. Surely many of these victims must have remembered Jesus' words as they went to the stake.
John 16:2 They shall put you out of the synagogues [excommunicate you from the church]: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.
Later, after the Protestant Reformation had grabbed hold in Europe and some Protestant monarchs came to the throne in (primarily) northern European nations, though their doctrines were more biblically correct, their attitude was the same as Rome's. "We've got the power now; let's use it to wipe out our enemies; we'll just call them God's enemies, and that makes it okay." They were Sauls in their own right. They simply turned the tables. They were the persecutors of not only Catholics, but of any others who did not agree with the new boss and the new "truth," as defined by them.
Interestingly, we can easily discern a very literal fulfillment (antitype) of the type provided in the story of Jonathan eating the honey. I recall very clearly as a boy being raised as a strict Roman Catholic. (For the record, I left Catholicism when I left the seminary in 1967.) But as a lad, I remember being fearful of not obeying the commandments…oh, not merely the Big Ten, but Rome's big six as well, and all the other commandments of men which I was indoctrinated to believe—such as: Rome's (Saul's) commandment: Ye shall fast from midnight until after "Holy Communion" the next day. Another: On Friday ye shall fast from meat (except fish). All this on pain of (eternal) death in hellfire, (supposedly)—just as Saul had decreed death for any who broke his commandment on fasting! The church of Rome has long since revoked those "laws," but I have often wondered about the fairness to all those poor souls who are now in hell for breaking them during all the prior centuries. (Grin.)
Whether we are discussing Sauls in church or state, it is a fact that whenever "ethically-challenged" persons ascend to high office, they always live in fear of the next criminal who will be trying to dethrone them. The twentieth century's machinations among Catholic hierarchy to ascend to the papal office were hardly different from the Dark Ages. There are certain things that have leaked out in recent decades, such as the probable murder in 1978 of Pope John Paul I , who preceded the present pope.1
John Paul I had reigned only 33 days. He was likely poisoned to death. The reason: he was not one of "da boys." Somehow, the "wrong" man had managed to win the papal office. He quite possibly was an ethical man because he had immediately launched an investigation into the shady dealings of the Vatican Bank. After 32 days the new pope had seen enough. He gave a list of people to be replaced to Cardinal Jean Villot, the Vatican Secretary of State. (Incidentally, the very fact that the Vatican has a secretary of state tells us that the Roman "church" is more than a church. They still see themselves as both church and state—as in the Dark Ages. But that's another story.)
The huge and far-reaching financial scandals of the Vatican Bank which were about to be exposed caused panic among six major players behind the scenes. It would spell ruin to Buenos Aires banker and Mafia money-launderer Roberto Calvi. He quickly contacted his protector, Licio Gelli, the powerful head of the secret Masonic organization P2. The exposure would likewise ruin New York Sicilian banker Michele Sindona who was tied directly with the head of the Vatican Bank, Bishop Paul Marcinkus.
Marcinkus in turn was a close friend and "business partner" of Chicago Cardinal John Cody. The record of Cody is one of a man so ruthless, wicked and powerful that the word "tyrant" may have been coined for him. In one decade of Cody's rule, one-third of the priests in his archdiocese quit the priesthood. Cody was among those on the new pope's list to be replaced. The sixth man who would have been ruined was one whom John Paul I's investigations had not yet ferreted out. How did the other five learn of their impending financial and political ruin? From the sixth man, Cardinal Jean Villot, the secretary of state!
With Albino Luciani (John Paul I) out of the picture, the way was clear for the "right" man to be installed at the helm of the Roman church, Karol Wojtyla (aka Pope John Paul II), a man who knew how to "play ball with da big boys." After all, had he not risen to be the top dog of the church in Poland? A cardinal in a Communist country?? I had always thought that the God-hating Communist regimes persecuted and killed true Christians—they had done so by the tens of millions in Russia and China. Yet, we are to believe that Wojtyla is a bona fide Christian who somehow escaped notice of the Communist regime? I think not! Da guy was playing ball with the antichrist communists from the "git go."
Therefore, since Wojtyla's ascension to the papal throne in 1978, it has been business as usual at the Vatican. All six players remained in place, at least for a time. Calvi was later found "suicided," hanging under the Blackfriar's Bridge in London. Villot was ill and died six months after John Paul I. Truth is always stranger than fiction. For while the Roman Catholic church pretends to fight Freemasonry and the Mafia, the truth is that at the very highest levels, the Great Whore is in bed with them! Although this theme is evident in all the "Godfather" books and movies, the last in the series provides the best glimpse. It is a fictionalized version of the six players and the Vatican Bank scandal, with the fictional "Michael Corleone" in the middle.
The widespread corruption of the Saul church is not limited to financial scandals, Machiavellian political intrigues and assassinations. Occasionally in recent decades, the widespread practice of some priests preying on people, especially young boys, has been revealed. In just the past few weeks, it has once again hit the headlines. If such revelations were to come out in every diocese in the nation—I believe the potential is there—the judgments from civil suits alone could bankrupt the Catholic church. Although the church of Rome is enormously wealthy,2 imagine multimillion dollar judgments in every jurisdiction in America. The age of Pentecost is over. Therefore, the Saul church must come down. Not Christ's true and universal church, mind you; but the false churches must fall and give way to the church under a Tabernacles anointing.
The pedophile scandals are only the tip of the iceberg in the Catholic church. The Protestant clergy, not being bound by the silly celibacy rule, does not have near the problem with pedophilia, but there is plenty of dirty laundry among the Protestant Sauls as well. But whether the Sauls be Catholic or Protestant, it is always about love of money and the power and control over people that it buys. For as the Scripture declares "There is none righteous, no, not one."
1.	See In God's Name by David Yallop, 1984
2.	See The Vatican Empire and Vatican, U.S.A., by Nino Lo Bello, 1972

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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You are here: Home / Readers Forum / Let's Talk About Ahavat Ger, Relating to the Other
Let's Talk About Ahavat Ger, Relating to the Other
Image: Screen capture URJ blogs
By Edmund Case
Over the past two years, I have increasingly felt that the Jewish community, in addition of course to addressing pressing external issues, needs to also focus inwardly on engaging more interfaith families, something that is essential if liberal Judaism is to thrive in the future. Engaging interfaith families should be seen as an expression of the cardinal Jewish sensibility of ahavat ger, usually interpreted as "welcoming the stranger."
Welcoming the stranger doesn't mean eliminating distinctive identities, an issue of concern to many Jews. Recently, Daniel Drezner wrote in The Washington Post that not all "forms of identity are defined in the exclusion of the other"; the root of community can come "not from exclusion but from a shared sense of meaning." "American," for example, is an identity based on a sense of meaning shared by Jews and people of all religions, of all races, with different sexual preferences and abilities – and not in conflict with those identities.
The concept of defining community not by exclusion of the other but by shared meaning is a helpful framework for understanding the obstacles as well as the opportunities for engaging interfaith families.
Much of the Jewish response to intermarriage has been not to welcome the stranger, but to exclude as "other" partners from different faith traditions, and the children of interfaith couples. I think of obstacles to engagement such as the ongoing controversy in the Conservative movement over officiation for interfaith couples; statements from Israel describing intermarriage as a "plague"; a recent renewed suggestion that interfaith families celebrating Hanukkah and Christmas amounts to religious syncretism; and another recent renewed suggestion that it's possible to encourage endogamy without alienating people who are intermarrying.
But like "American," we could define "member of the Jewish community" as including both people who identify as Jews, as well as their partners from different faith traditions who engage in Jewish life with them, thereby demonstrating a shared sense of meaning, without identifying as Jews themselves. Failing to do so is a recipe for loss and diminishment.
Consider the potential for growth and enrichment expressed in these two stories of partners from different faith traditions in response to the Pittsburgh tragedy:
Robyn Martin, an African-American Catholic woman, who with her Jewish wife is keeping a Jewish home and raising a Jewish son, felt fiercely protective "of my Jewish family and of my entire Jewish community."
Cindy Skrzycki, the Catholic wife of David Shribman, the executive editor of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, when asked her reaction as a Catholic, said "I don't think I viewed this as a Catholic. I have been deeply marinated in Judaism… I love both traditions. … Judaism has been a central theme in our family."
Here are two partners from different faith traditions who have been embraced by Jewish communities and feel a shared sense of meaning with members of those communities – "marinated in Judaism" without identifying as Jewish themselves – and who are raising or raised Jewish children (one of Skrzycki's daughters is in rabbinical school).
What does it mean to include the other in a community based on a shared sense of meaning? It means more than welcoming the stranger, politely inviting observation and limited participation in the community's activities. I believe that effectively engaging interfaith families requires extending the concept of ahavat ger to a position of radical inclusion of the other.
Radical inclusion means thinking of and treating interfaith couples as fully equal to inmarried couples, and partners from different faith backgrounds and the children of interfaith couples as fully equal to Jews. That is "radical" because it stands on their head traditional tribal and insular Jewish attitudes that privilege Jews and inmarriage and regard partners from different faith traditions and intermarriage as other and sub-optimal.
Radical inclusion means adopting policies flowing from inclusive attitudes, in areas including wedding officiation, recognition of patrilineal Jews, ritual participation and the like, that allow the full participation of interfaith families in Jewish life and community, in contrast to traditional policies that restrict full participation to Jews only.
Rabbi Noa Kushner recently referred to "the Jews and those of us who do Jewish with us." Mark Sokoll, executive director of the JCC in Boston, recently said "The idea of community in Jewish tradition is defined by expansive inclusivity, embracing every voice in the chorus for the music to truly rise all the way to the Divine." (emphasis in original) We need to see many more of these kinds of explicit statements that reflect radically inclusive attitudes.
Jewish leaders are not explicitly addressing the need to engage interfaith families, or how to do so, nearly enough. But we need to talk about it. That is the motivation for the launch of the new Center for Radically Inclusive Judaism, which will engage in advocacy writing and speaking in favor of radically inclusive attitudes and policies, as well as programmatic efforts designed to engage interfaith families. The Center will partner with other organizations, initially with InterfaithFamily, and build a broad-based alliance of progressive Jewish leaders to join in designing and implementing the advocacy efforts and promoting radical inclusion. To explore participating in these efforts, please Connect with the Center.
Edmund Case, the retired founder of InterfaithFamily, is the author of Radical Inclusion: Engaging Interfaith Families for a Thriving Jewish Future, to be published on January 15, 2019 by the new Center for Radically Inclusive Judaism.
Filed Under: Readers Forum, The American Jewish Scene
Lewis Margolis says
While thoughtful discussion of ahavat ger pushes Jews and Jewish organizations to explore fully the expression of and practice of core Jewish values, it would be helpful to hear reflections on how this concept extends to governance. It is one thing to promote an expansive and welcoming engagement with non-Jews who find meaning in Jewishness, but it seems another to extend these views to positions of authority—decision-making. When non-Jews ascend to positions of official governance, do not the definitions of Jewish identity, no matter how broad or narrow, no matter how welcoming or how dismissive, ultimately lose their meaning and purpose? Guidance on this distinction of the role of governance is welcome.


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Brett Eldredge and Kelly Clarkson Didn't Meet in Real Life Until Well After Recording Their Christmas Duet
Carena Liptak
Carena Liptak Published: December 21, 2020
Brett Eldredge and Kelly Clarkson recently made musical magic with the release of their holiday duet "Under the Mistletoe." But although the two artists sound perfectly in sync in the studio recording of the song, they'd actually never met in person before signing on to sing it together -- a first for both duet partners.
While they may not have met "Under the Mistletoe," Eldredge and Clarkson recently finally did meet in person during an episode of Clarkson's The Kelly Clarkson Show. There, they traded notes on how strange it was to cut a song together despite never having gotten the chance to get to know each other in real life.
"I've never done it like this," Eldredge confessed, clarifying that although he had once recorded a duet with Meghan Trainor from separate locations, he'd never done so without at least meeting his partner at some point prior to recording.
"But you had at least met!" Clarkson interjects. "I don't know if I've ever not met the person."
However, the two singers quickly established that they'd long been mutual fans. "When I heard your voice, I was like, 'Ahhh,'" Eldredge goes on to say, as a compliment to Clarkson. She adds, "Oh, man, same."
Eldredge and Clarkson got a chance to do more than meet during that episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show: They also gave their first-ever live performance of "Under the Mistletoe" from the show's stage, backed by Clarkson's house band, Y'all. With Clarkson in a glittering, floor-length black-and-gold-trimmed gown and Eldredge wearing a festive burgundy blazer, the pair were decked out in their Christmas best as they performed, offering pitch-perfect harmonies that proved that the studio magic of "Under the Mistletoe" might have taken place long-distance, but it was no fluke.
During Eldredge's appearance on Clarkson's couch, he also discussed his 2020 album, Sunday Drive, and shared some of his favorite musical Christmas memories.
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Hear Chris Young's New Single, 'Raised on Country'
Angela Stefano
Angela Stefano Published: January 4, 2019
Country music played a major role in Chris Young's life growing up, and his new single is a tribute to the artists of his childhood. Readers can press play above to hear "Raised on Country."
"I was raised on Merle / Raised on Willie / Got my honky-tonk attitude from Joe Diffie / Daddy did too, it's family tradition," Young sings in the chorus of "Raised on Country." "When someone cranks it up, you can't help but listen / My upbringing sounds like George Strait singin' / And I've gotta give props to the radio / 'Cause if you know me, I was raised on country."
Young also references quite a bit of familiar country imagery in the upbeat new song: pickup trucks, Tennessee whiskey, Southern accents and stomping boots. In the bridge, he nods to Alan Jackson's "Chattahoochee": "Learned a lot about livin' and a little 'bout love."
In October, Young told The Boot that he's "been in the studio constantly," and was "really excited" about the new music he's been working on. He first teased the release of "Raised on Country" in November, but further details about his next project have yet to be announced, however.
Young's most recent single, "Hangin' On," recently became his 11th No. 1 single. The song is his fifth consecutive No. 1 song, following "I'm Comin' Over," "Think of You," "Sober Saturday Night" and "Losing Sleep."
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Source: Hear Chris Young's New Single, 'Raised on Country'
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Tipping the scale
In 2014, Gartner coined the term 'Web-scale IT' and predicted that by 2017 it will be an architectural approach found functioning in 50 percent of enterprises globally. With the unprecedented rise of an inevitable data-driven world, this IT approach is expected to help businesses achieve the agility, scalability and business growth that meet rising industry demands.
The rise of digital business has, to some extent, redefined success for many organisations, attributing it to a company's ability to respond to their customers more quickly and efficiently at a massive scale.
The pervasiveness of cloud, increasing amounts of data and complex application requirements have given birth to a new architectural approach which research firm Gartner calls Web-scale IT. The firm's Chief of Research, Infrastructure and Operations Cameron Haight explains that Web-scale IT pertains to a systematised pattern that enables the capabilities of large cloud service providers within an enterprise IT setting.
Cloud service companies like Amazon, Google and Facebook have been using this approach in delivering their respective services. Gartner believes that if enterprises want to keep pace, they have to emulate the architectures, methods and practices of these companies.
Web-scale IT enables businesses to seamlessly connect and utilise cloud environments. It also introduces increased scalability and agility to the data centre, and application development to further drive value creation for enterprises.
Although traditional architectural approaches are still well-suited and effective for some IT infrastructures, industry experts highlight that these may not be able to deliver the speed, agility and scalability businesses need going forward.
"Even though traditional IT infrastructures have also changed especially with the recent industry developments it is still very silo-base," says Chris Burnet, Cloud Services and Software Solutions Manager, Middle East, Eastern Europe, Africa and Russia, NetApp. "IT teams within companies will need to procure a particular infrastructure, buy hardware, configure it with the data centre, get it provisioned and so on.
"Whereas with Web-scale IT or, as we call it at NetApp, hyper-scale IT, companies are able to deliver IT services on-demand without having to go through all the manual activities before actually getting everything online and moving the necessary workloads. Companies can deploy their offerings at a massive scale and their customers are able to quickly and securely access them at any time," explains Burnet.
While both DevOps and Web-scale IT are focused on employing a quick and agile approach within the organisation, Burnet says that the two should not be confused with one another. "DevOps focuses more on the culture or practice that fosters collaboration and communication amongst an organisation's software developers, IT operations team, quality and risk management teams and so on. It is emphasised in the way the people within these teams are utilising the third platform while harmoniously working together to achieve various goals in that space," he says.
"The Web-scale approach," he explains, "is more about maintaining a resilient infrastructure. It involves the management of infrastructures, which marries agile applications and systematic processes at any scale. The two are fundamentally different as one focused more on the software and the other is more about the infrastructure."
Organisations in the Middle East region are always on the look out for technological disruptions and new strategies to adopt, especially in countries like the UAE and Qatar. Web-scale IT can present numerous benefits for businesses in this region and will help them better position their organisations in the impending digital era.
Shams Hasan, Enterprise Product Manager, Middle East, Dell, points out that today more than ever, technology is critical to driving business results, finding and capturing scarce resources, optimising operations, and innovating for future growth. "At the same time, business and technology leaders must also look at making responsible technology investments whilst ensuring their businesses are future-ready. There is a widespread increase in the adoption of IT trends that optimise costs, maximise efficiency, and simplify management of rapidly growing IT infrastructure and ecosystems.
"In our region, we see more and more customers trying to take advantage of these particular advancements and also increasingly outsourcing to the cloud," he says.
Burnet agrees with this notion sharing that since the market is not yet big enough to support data centres for big web-based companies, there is a huge opportunity for network providers to assist companies with Web-scale approaches. "There are several companies with whom we've had dialogues with previously, who have mentioned that they are eyeing to provide services similar to Amazon's in this market. We see the demand for Web-scale ramping up significantly," he says. "Even though the region has been lagging behind when it comes to this strategy, we can see that network providers are often quick to catch up on these kinds of technology disruptors. And, in the next three to five years I think there will be a massive explosion of cloud services both from the incumbent network providers and the hyper-scalers."
Furthermore, Hasan identifies that as this trend gains traction he also sees that there willl be a huge unmet demand that managed service providers (MSPs) must try to cater to. "In our region MSPs such as MEEZA and eHDF will be early adopters of Web-scale like solutions," he says. "Web-scale technology strategies, projects, and implementations have very long-term horizons and will evolve over time in our region. However, the adoption will also depend on vendor technology offerings embracing cloud-optimised and software-defined solutions."
Although adopting Web-scale IT methodologies does not particularly mean the business will grow to the same extent as Facebook, Google or Amazon, the approach is not restricted to just companies of that scale. Haight notes in the Gartner report that, "a smaller business could achieve a higher IT velocity than its bigger rivals through Web-scale IT, enabling first mover advantage with new opportunities."
The industry regards the Web-scale approach as the future, as it can be instrumental for organisations of many sizes to scale faster and cheaper, and adapt more quickly in the digital era.
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2022: Our year in review
Byron Tassoni-Resch
14 December 2022 - 10 min read
This year went by with the snap of a finger.
At least, that's how it feels.
After what felt like the end of the pandemic, and the return to some sort of normality, I think a lot of people (myself included) were expecting some sort of 'roaring twenties', whereby markets would open up and we could expect high growth across the board for ourselves and our clients.
The first quarter did start like that. We won 7 out of 8 pitches in the first few months. A highlight here was winning against a host of major independent agencies in the UK, which felt like a great achievement and confirmation that we were going in the right direction.
Towards the end of February, the first domino fell in the macro conditions which ultimately led to the economic challenges we see today. Russia invaded Ukraine - which impacted global markets, energy prices, and consumer confidence - and that paired with the political instability in the UK, previous economic policies, and global challenges meant inflation increased to its highest level in recent history.
However, even against a turbulent economic backdrop, we're very happy with how we've grown through the year. Let's see how we did vs. our targets (which we wrote in our last year in review article):
Lots of positives, and lots of learnings. Let's dig into the details a bit more below.
As we approach the end of 2022 and look ahead to 2023 it's a good time to review where we are and where we want to be over the coming years.
The foundations have been set, we have an incredible team, we are achieving incredible results for our clients and we are on a good growth trajectory.
As we think about growth, we don't just think of it as a traditional technology company might (i.e. looking for pure exponential growth); we aim for linear growth. There is a big difference between the two. For a services based business, growing too fast or without the right processes (internal technology, training, hiring, etc) can mean that service quality might decrease with growth. This is the main reason we are so focused on growing sustainably: as we grow we want our service quality to increase. Therefore we have to be very deliberate about how we plan for growth and approach it.
From a services perspective, we've made good progress across media and technology, but we've still very much at the beginning of our multi-year plan.
For the time being our focus remains on maturing our Paid Search, Paid Social, and Marketing Technology (Data Services) services, but when the time is right we can and will expand into other service areas.
With the right people, expertise, and technology we believe there are so many more levers we will be able to pull for our clients to help them achieve their targets.
What did we do as a team this year?
After working remotely for the first 2 years of our existence there were a few things we wanted to do.
Have a company trip to spend time together.
Get an office so we could have a place where we could meet when needed.
Organising the company trip was more complicated than expected. At the end of 2021, we were looking around for options - we toyed at one stage with going skiing in Europe - but then the uncertainty around travel restrictions meant we iced those plans and decided to stay local.
We took to Airbnb and had a look for something suitable.
Eventually, the team found this manor near Derby, which was perfect.
Big enough to host everyone and mostly in the middle of the country; so folks from all over would have an equal distance to travel.
We spent the weekend playing games, off-road biking (where we got covered in mud, evidence below), eating food, and hanging out.
One of the best decisions we made for the trip was to invite folks who were about to join the agency along to meet everyone - what an onboarding!
Getting our office
We launched our early careers scheme this year and we knew that to give the best education possible to the new joiners, the training should be in person.
Getting the office ready for the scheme was therefore a wonderful deadline to get organised and find ourselves a home.
This was actually the third time we tried to find a HQ. The first 2 were scampered by various lockdowns over the last couple of years.
But, we did it. We found a good space between Waterloo East and London Bridge and moved in at the beginning of August.
Luckily we had Adam, who turned out to be pretty handy and helped make the space our own.
No office is complete until you have a neon sign up.
And of course, you'll need plants, lots of plants.
Once everything was ready, it was brilliant to open the office.
Then, towards the end of October, we held our first-ever Hackathon. We got everyone in, and spent 2 days working on projects, having fun, and being together.
In November, to celebrate a brilliant year and because of the upcoming Black Friday and holiday season, we decided to have a little fun and get in on the action, spinning up a little ecomm store for our team and partners.
We gave out Coupon Codes and allowed folks to order their own custom WeDiscover sneakers.
Becoming the Best Small PPC Agency in the UK
This year we decided to enter our first set of awards.
After being nominated as finalists a few of the WeDiscover team members made their way to the Bloomsbury Big Top Arena in London to attend the UK Search Awards ceremony - a big one!
Incredibly, we went home with the award for the Best Small PPC Agency in the UK (under 25 employees)!
After only being 2 years old, and those years being pretty turbulent in the world, this award win felt incredibly good.
It's a testament to the amazing work done by all team members at WeDiscover.
The moment it happened:
Going up to collect our award felt pretty good. We hope it will be the first of many!
Launching our EMI Options Scheme
We made a fundamental change to the agency this year.
We launched our EMI Options Scheme.
For those who don't know what that is, we (as the directors and co-founders) take a percentage of the business and create options for employees to buy shares at very favourable rates, thus allowing our team to own a piece of the agency.
When we first launched the agency we didn't think we were going to go down the route of creating options. But, our minds were changed after speaking with the team (who have an incredible passion for the agency and wanted to own their piece of it).
So, every eligible full-time employee who joins WeDiscover now has the opportunity to own their share of the agency.
Starting our Early Careers Scheme
Towards the end of last year we decided to set in motion the wheels for our Early Careers Scheme.
We have called this a Grad Scheme in the past, but we're moving away from that terminology, because going forward it won't be limited to just graduates, but also folks who didn't go to university or who just want a career switch, in recognition of the fact that access to higher education isn't the only indicator of exceptional potential.
If I look back at this year the scheme, and the success of it, is one of my proudest memories. Solely because I had very little to do with it. It was owned, managed and designed by select team members, who took the ball and ran with it.
The posting received 100s of applications within 48 hours and the team interviewed a great range of candidates before finalising offers with a small group of outstanding future team members.
The interview process was rewarding for us as a business as we explored the motivations of candidates who have not previously worked in the industry.
Our key focuses going in were fairness and feedback. We wanted to ensure that everyone who interviewed with us was able to leave the process with a positive experience regardless of whether they were successful, and we gave personalised feedback for candidates at every stage.
We also ensured we had CV-less interviews to ensure that our focus was on the individual's drive, motivation and potential, and to reduce any unconscious bias.
You can read more about the process here.
The Scheme
In September this year, we then had our small group of Early Careers join us in the London office.
They have enjoyed a thorough training scheme to learn about paid search and client management. Since September we have delivered over 30 training sessions and countless pairing sessions and workshops channeling our approach to training and adult learning.
Our first set of Early Career joiners are already having a fantastic impact on the business through the work they're contributing and the energy they have brought to the company! Their feedback on our processes and the scheme is also already being taken on board to help further improve the experience of future employees.
These new joiners have set the standard and will be on hand to support and guide our next early careers cohort in H1 2023!
Launching our Personal Development Plans for the team
As we grow and our teams expand, we want to ensure the process of progression for all team members is tracked, measured and fair.
One of the ways we plan on doing that is via our version of Personal Development Plans (PDPs).
As you might expect, our approach to this is analytical by nature.
We've created a matrix of various skills we think are required in order to excel in performance media or technology.
As an introduction, we break skills into Areas, Themes and Topics (as seen below). We then describe what is usually required at various skill levels (Core, Adept, Expert).
Team members and their managers can assess themselves for these Areas, Themes, and Topics and then decide where they want to focus their development on over the next 3-6 months. Usually, one or two focus areas will be chosen based on the direction they would like their career to move towards and what they find engaging.
Filling this out in a PDP then yields a report that showcases where you currently are, and where you want to get to, giving a visual and trackable framework for personal development.
Back Office Operations
Operationally we made pretty large strides forward this year.
We had always been tracking time allocation across teams, clients and projects, but we weren't doing anything interesting with that data.
Towards the beginning of the year we spun up a few projects and work streams to change that.
What we aimed to do was ensure that every client was getting the level of support they needed (and signed up for), and equally, as a business, we wanted to ensure that we understood and allocated the right volume of resources to make sure their targets were met.
We took the time tracking and project data and started to build out our operations system.
First up was a macro view of client performance, which looked at resources allocated vs. planned for.
Here we can see things like:
➡ Time allocated and used per month
➡ Internal costings per month
➡ Profitability ratios
➡ Servicing agreements
➡ Team allocation (tech & media)
➡ Individual team member time allocation
This lets us know if there is anything that we need to change from a resource allocation perspective, and when we need to do it (sensitive data has been pixelated for confidentiality across the following screenshots).
Then we wanted to get a view at an individual team member level. As a service-based business, our team members are our greatest asset, and we want to ensure that their work levels are at the right balance (too much leads to stress, and too little leads to boredom).
What we broke down was billable time allocation vs. internal time allocation, client responsibilities, and revenue generated at a client level.
Then, we had a pretty obvious realisation that while we had this data at a Director level, it wasn't accessible at an individual level. So we created personal reports where team members can see their own monthly resource plan.
This is only to be used as a guideline and to flag if there is a project or workstream that is taking too much or too little time vs expectations.
This would never be used in annual reviews or as a guide for promotions, or pay rises.
What it does do, is look at how much time has been spent on a client so far through the month alongside the goal, and work out - if the current pace of work continues exactly the same over the month - how much time would be allocated at month end and how that shapes up vs the target.
Therefore, in theory, each team member can understand as the month goes on where additional focus should go.
This year we doubled top-line revenue and maintained our gross and net margins, which is what we were aiming for.
A large contributor to this was maintaining a 96% client retention rate across the year (which is the metric I am most proud of).
As we move into the next year, our target is to grow top-line revenue by around 75% whilst keeping the margins as they are.
Over the last year, we have also leveled up our Financial operations by bringing in a fractional FD, who has helped bring structure to how to forecast, plan and price. All of which are maturing as we go on.
We have received a lot of interest from other digital agencies around investments into WeDiscover, which we haven't accepted due to the fact that we have always been quite conservative with our cash reserves and don't require additional funding at this stage. But the discussions were very valuable from a benchmarking perspective to understand how we are doing in the industry.
As a growing agency, we are in constant discussions internally around choosing to allocate technical resources to client-related work (where we directly earn revenue) or internal technology work (where we create IP, and therefore ultimately products/services that we can ship to clients much faster once created).
As an estimate, we currently allocate around 30%-40% of some technology team members' time to internal technology projects.
There have been a few big milestones and projects that are worth calling out:
We have onboarded Looker as our BI tool. Expensive, yes. But it gives us reporting and insight capabilities that are unrivalled across the agency landscape.
Built internal tools for standardising server-to-server conversions, reporting on conversion maturity, building decomposition charts, automated audience upload processes, share of search reporting, and more.
We've created a new function in our tech team: solution engineers. They will assist our clients with marketing technology operations (tagging, tracking, and platform management).
We are continuing to hire and train our Technology team as we go into 2023, and expect to see a lot more innovation here as we grow.
Content releases
This year we did a big push on writing more case studies. All-in-all we published 4 new articles:
➡ Building a Credit Map of the UK
➡ Leveraging Cohort Maturity to improve ROAS
➡ Using Hexagonal Plotting and Dynamic Inventories to increase revenue
➡ Using Micro-Conversions to Kickstart Adventure Travel
These have done a huge amount for us, both in terms of increasing our brand awareness (and showcasing the type of work that we do), but have also resulted in a huge amount of inbound leads.
We will be continuing to publish many more case studies as we move into 2023.
Regarding scripts, we released 2 new Google Ads scripts this year:
➡ ETA to RSA Builder (which is actually a big organic traffic driver for us)
➡ Decomposition Chart Builder
In addition to scripts and case studies, we wrote a few articles about the agency, our hiring processes etc. The main driver for this was to give some extra insight to people who are thinking about joining the team, either as a grad or experienced team member.
➡ How WeDiscover approaches Training & Development
➡ Getting Started With Our Early Careers Scheme: The First Interviews
Some new content that we will be writing about next year is something we're calling 'Showcases', which are not case studies or scripts but sit somewhere in between. They will highlight approaches, theories we have explored, new ideas, etc.
We have the ability to run some sophisticated experiments, so writing about it and sharing them with the industry is something we're excited about doing.
Going into 2023
It's turbulent out there at the moment. The cost of living crisis, the funding landscape, the energy crisis. All of these things make for a difficult outlook.
However, we are still expecting to grow. As difficult as things are at the moment, we actually think this is where we can add real value and shine as an agency.
Our performance capabilities and technology (understanding value, incrementality, LTV, etc) is what companies will be leaning towards over the next few years.
Here are some of our targets that what we're looking forward to working towards:
➡ Growing to around 30+ team members.
➡ Growing revenue by around 75% while maintaining current margins.
➡ Expanding our Paid Social technology and team.
➡ Launching our Employee Pillars scheme (which will include an employee led D&I team, amongst other groups focussing on sustainability and CSR initiatives).
➡ Expanding our intelligence service (reporting, insights, etc).
➡ Continuing to build some of the most innovative novel solutions for the most exciting brands.
➡ Launching a second round of our Early Career scheme.
Since the start of the agency, one of the big reasons we have been able to work with so many wonderful clients is because of our approach to solving challenges. Using the skill stacks of performance marketers, engineers, and data scientists allows us to find answers in unique and novel ways.
As we grow, we want to ensure that we maintain and foster this approach to solving problems. This is, and will always continue to be, part of our agency mindset and ethos.
The strength of any agency is its people. So when I look back over 2022, the biggest success has been our team members. As we've gotten bigger, the ability for team members to own entire projects, take initiative, and grow has been incredible to witness.
I have so much pride in everyone who works here and feel very lucky to call them colleagues.
Grateful for the clients who have chosen us to work with them and trust us with exciting projects, increased budgets and expansions into more and more channels.
I love the work that we are doing and the plans that we have. It feels like the only limitation at the moment is our imagination (and time!)
Byron & Adam
WeDiscover
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Biology /
What is the maximum speed at which a human being can run and the myth of Usain Bolt's chicken nuggets
Usain Bolt He is the first athlete to win the 100 and 200 meters in three consecutive Olympics. The Jamaican runner is also the fastest runner on the planet, as it can cover 100 meters in 9.58 seconds. And the 200 meters, in 19.19 seconds. This was achieved in the summer of 2008, thus obtaining a percentage of improvement in the speed that its predecessors had taken 23 years to reduce.
What is your secret? Can you theoretically achieve a better brand to it? What is the limit? And the chicken nuggets?
Let's start by breaking down myths. Chicken nuggets are not your secret. Although Bolt is spiced up by chicken nuggets and spicy wings, and that he usually eats them the days before an Olympic final, junk food is not responsible for his muscular power, but rather a very disciplined diet prepared by a chef specialized: from egg sandwich to fish and pasta, finishing the day with a good plate of roast chicken and vegetables (including broccoli, which he apparently hates).
In fact, Bolt has a disadvantage over its competitors: it is too high. It measures 1.96 and weighs 96 kg, not preventing it from accelerating so much when you start running. But Bolt compensates for that initial disadvantage by developing a huge power of 400 kg with each stride. It reaches its maximum speed in approximately 70 meters, at which point it advances at 44.73 kilometers per hour.
To achieve this strength an ideal balance of muscle fibers is needed: between 55 and 65% of rapid contraction, 35-45% of slow contraction and muscles 30.4 centimeters wide. Other factors may contribute: shaved head, height where the competition takes place (ideally about 1,000 meters), atmospheric pressure, humidity, temperature ...
With all this in mind, Has Bolt already reached the human limit? No other human being will achieve a greater speed if he does not resort to illegal substances or bionic modifications? According to the Iranian mathematician Pray Norubary, there is still room. Little, but something remains. The introduction of professional training, improvements in training techniques and the introduction of ergogenic supplements (substances used to improve performance in the form of nutritional supplements) also profoundly changed athletic performance.
After observing the index of improvement of the athletes, he drew the resulting curve, extrapolating it to the future. Based on this progression curve, he calculated that the limit would be reached at about 9.44 seconds and that this would take place in 2050. However, Bolt achieved 9.58 in 2008, when Norubary established that mark would be reached in the year 2030, so we can't rely on their predictions much.
For his part, the sports scientist John Brenkus, who researched the subject for his 2010 book The Perfection Point, argues that the "perfect athlete" could run the 100 meters, in ideal conditions, in just 9.01 seconds. Maybe very soon, chicken nuggets aside, we can check if any of these predictors are right or wrong.
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Science Online Residence © Copyright 2020 | What is the maximum speed at which a human being can run and the myth of Usain Bolt's chicken nuggets


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Aiden Condron
Lecturer in Acting
Aiden has been a performing arts professional for over twenty-five years working as an actor, director and actor trainer. He holds an MA in Actor Training & Coaching from Royal Central School of Speech & Drama (London) and has also trained as an actor at the Conservatory of Music and Drama (Dublin).
Aiden has taught acting and directed productions in numerous drama schools and HE institutions in Ireland and the UK including Falmouth University, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Rose Bruford College, Guildford School of Acting, East 15, The Gaiety School of Acting and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan). He has also been invited to conduct workshops, trainings and talks with actors and performers for various institutions in Spain, Italy, Poland and Japan.
From 2002-2102 Aiden was the founding artistic director of NERVOUSYSTEM a Dublin-based International Performance Laboratory where he directed a repertoire of publicly and critically acclaimed performances which toured throughout Europe.
As an actor Aiden has received critical acclaim for performances in a number of works by Samuel Beckett performed in Tokyo and Los Angeles. Other notable credits include Angelo in Measure for Measure (Rattlebag, Dublin), and Sordido in the Irish premier of Women Beware Womenby Howard Barker. In 2000 Aiden was nominated Best Supporting Actor at the Irish Theatre Awards for his portrayal of Marc Antony in Julius Caesar. Film and TV credits include Game of Thrones,Saving Private Ryanand The Tudors. Aiden is an associate editor on the Routledge journal of Theatre Dance & Performance Training.