David Kelley

David Kelley is the founder and chairman of the global design and innovation company, IDEO. He also founded Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, known as the d.school. As Stanford’s Donald W. Whittier Professor in Mechanical Engineering, Kelley is the Academic Director of both the degree-granting undergraduate and graduate programs in design within the School of Engineering, and has been a professor in the program for more than 35 years. He is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and earned his master’s degree from Stanford University in Engineering/Product Design. Kelley’s work has been acknowledged with numerous design awards, and in addition to being inducted into the National Academy of Engineering, he holds honorary PhD’s from both the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth and Art Center College in Pasadena. Widely known for teaching human-centered design methodology and design thinking to students and business executives, Kelley and his brother Tom co-authored the New York Times best-selling book, “Creative Confidence” (Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All).