The Robert Fletcher Award is given annually to a graduate or friend of Thayer School in recognition of distinguished achievement and service in the highest tradition of the School. The award is named in honor of Robert Fletcher, who was appointed by Sylvanus Thayer as the School's first professor of engineering and its first director (1871–1918).

The Dean of Thayer School chooses each year's award recipient who then traditionally delivers Thayer School's Investiture speech.

The 2014 Robert Fletcher Award recipient is David Kelley, founder and chairman of the global design firm IDEO and founder of Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, also known as the d.school.

The Donald W. Whittier Professor in the Product Design program at Stanford University, Kelly changed the field of design by pioneering human-centered design methodology, the culture of innovation, and design thinking education. A member of the National Academy of Engineering, he is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Sir Misha Black Medal for his “distinguished contribution to design education,” the Edison Achievement Award, the Chrysler Design Award and National Design Award in Product Design from the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.