# Kim Jordan

> Kim Jordan co-founded New Belgium Brewing in Fort Collins in 1991 and helped shape its employee ownership, open-book management and environmental practices. The former CEO and executive chair now chairs Mighty Arrow Family Foundation and works on a land stewardship project in Northern California.

- **Role:** Founder and Board Chair at Mighty Arrow Family Foundation
- **Organizations:** New Belgium Brewing, Mighty Arrow Family Foundation, Earthjustice, Hog Island Oyster Company, Colorado State University System (former board member)
- **From:** Providence, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Sandy Spring Friends School, Social work degree, Colorado State University, Honorary doctorate, Colorado State University
- **Known for:** Helped build New Belgium from a basement brewery into a nationally distributed beer business., Led the progression to full employee ownership., Colorado Business Hall of Fame inductee, 2025.

## Career timeline

- **1976** — Moved to Fort Collins.
- **1988** — Completed social work studies at CSU, according to her oral history.
- **1991** — Co-founded New Belgium Brewing with Jeff Lebesch; production began in June in their home basement.
- **1995** — Read Jack Stack’s The Great Game of Business, which influenced open-book management.
- **1996** — New Belgium began sharing equity with employees.
- **2012** — New Belgium completed the transaction to become fully employee-owned, publicly announced in 2013.
- **2013** — Launched a family foundation with her sons.
- **2015** — Handed the CEO role to Christine Perich and became executive chair.
- **2016** — Returned to the CEO role.
- **2017** — Handed the CEO role to Steve Fechheimer.
- **2019** — Employee owners approved New Belgium’s acquisition by Lion Little World Beverages, a Kirin subsidiary.
- **2020** — Family foundation adopted the Mighty Arrow name.
- **2024** — Completed eight years on the CSU System Board of Governors in December, including two as chair.
- **2025** — Inducted into Colorado Business Hall of Fame in February; received CSU honorary doctorate in May.
- **2026** — Described her Northern California land stewardship work and ongoing board roles in a March foundation interview.

## Achievements

- Helped build New Belgium from a basement brewery into a nationally distributed beer business.
- Led the progression to full employee ownership.
- Colorado Business Hall of Fame inductee, 2025.
- Colorado Governor’s Citizenship Medal for Growth and Innovation.
- Brewers Association Recognition Award.
- Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Partnership Conservation Achievement Award.
- CSU William E. Morgan Alumni Achievement Award, 2018.
- CSU honorary doctorate, 2025.

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — Mighty Arrow published an interview about consensus building, risk and her land stewardship work; she described living in a small Northern California town near coastal redwoods.
- **2025-09** — CSU published her conversation with Amy Parsons on The Next 150 podcast.
- **2025-05** — Received an honorary doctorate from CSU at its university-wide commencement.
- **2025-02** — Inducted into the Colorado Business Hall of Fame.

## Links

- Website: https://www.mightyarrow.org/kimjordan
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-jordan-522ba05

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/kim-jordan
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-14