FT. COLLINS, CO – WorldBlu has recognized New Belgium Brewing for its workplace practices by including it on the fifth annual “WorldBlu list of Most Democratic WorkplacesÔäó 2011”. New Belgium has made the list every year it has applied since 2008. Fifty-two organizations from around the world are recognized on the list created by WorldBlu, a company that specializes in organizational democracy. The list is published here.
The standards to get on the list are high and required a large number of New Belgium employees to complete a survey evaluating how the brewery practices ten democratic principles such as transparency, dialogue and listening, integrity and accountability. Some major factors in New Belgium receiving the distinction were its open-book management practices, employee-ownership and high involvement culture. WorldBlu developed the survey tool based on a decade of research into what makes a world-class democratic organization. Not all organizations that apply receive certification.
“Businesses that are open to organizational democracy are usually nimble, resourceful and actively maximizing their human potential,” comments Kim Jordan, CEO of Fort Collins-based New Belgium Brewery, which has over 350 employees and boasts a 97 percent retention rate. “When people feel knowledgeable about the process and that their views are respected and heard, then you have created a community where good ideas and talent can flourish without restraint.”
The “WorldBlu list of Most Democratic WorkplacesÔäó 2011” announcement comes as part of the fifth annual “Democracy in the Workplace Day”, which was April 12. For-profit and non-profit organizations from across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, the UK, India, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Malaysia made the WorldBlu List from a diversity of industries including aerospace, technology, manufacturing, healthcare, telecommunications, retail, services and energy, ranging in size from five to over 80,000 employees and representing over $15 billion in combined annual revenue.
Since first launching the WorldBlu List of Most Democratic Workplaces in 2007, the number of organizations certified has grown steadily from 34 to 52. WorldBlu has now either certified organizational members or has individual members in 55 countries worldwide, up from just four countries when it first began.
WorldBlu has offices throughout the US and UK and specializes in organizational democracy and freedom-centered leadership. Founded in 1997, WorldBlu’s vision is to see one billion people working in free and democratic workplaces worldwide. For more information, visit the WorldBlu website.