Dr. Jeffery Z. Jia, PHD

Co-Founder

Dr. Jia was born and raised in China. Over the course of his career, Dr. Jia has spent considerable time in both China and the United States and has also been a consultant to various foreign companies operating in China, where he has a substantial network.

Prior to co-founding Century Bridge, Dr. Jia, in partnership with James Gressett, became the first KFC franchisee in China, with stores located in Yangzhou. The two grew the business to become the largest KFC franchisee in China before exiting the investment in early 2008.

Prior to his involvement with KFC in 1999, Dr. Jia was General Manager of MetroMedia International Group China JV, where he successfully negotiated the sale of MetroMedia's Chinese assets to the Chinese government.

Before joining MetroMedia in 1994, Dr. Jia was a Director for the Health Research Institute for the State of Connecticut, an Assistant Professor at Cornell University, and also served as a Secretary for the Governor of the Gansu Province in China.

Dr. Jia earned Bachelors and Masters degrees in Economics from Lanzhou University in China in 1982. In 1985, Dr. Jia became one of fifty Chinese Nationals to earn a United Nations Post-Graduate Fellowship, subsequently earning his PhD in Sociology at the University of Texas at Austin.