Hashini Gunatilake
Research Fellow @MonashUni| Enthusiast of Human-Centric Innovation
Research Interests: Human-centric software engineering with a focus on the human, socio-technical, and cognitive dimensions of software development; Artificial Intelligence; Human-AI collaboration; AI futures and the future of work, including how AI transforms professional roles, work practices, and domain-specific futures; Digital Health; Empathy; the intersection of software engineering and psychology; and diversity and inclusion.
I am a Research Fellow at HumanAISE lab in the Faculty of Information Technology at Monash University. My research explores the human and socio-technical dimensions of Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Digital Health, and Empathy, with a particular focus on how people, teams, and intelligent technologies interact to shape software development and healthcare outcomes. My current work focuses on agentic AI, human–AI collaboration, digital health, and the future of software teams, examining how AI technologies reshape work practices, collaboration, and organisational outcomes.
I completed my PhD in Software Engineering at Monash University as part of the HumaniSE Lab, under the supervision of Professor John Grundy, Professor Rashina Hoda, and Dr Ingo Mueller. My doctoral research investigated the role of empathy in developer–stakeholder interactions and identified ways to improve software engineering processes and outcomes through empathetic practices. Drawing on qualitative and mixed-methods approaches, I continue to work at the intersection of software engineering, digital health, psychology, and emerging technologies. My research has been published in leading venues, including IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering (TSE), ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology (TOSEM), the International Conference on Software Engineering (ICSE), IEEE Software, Information and Software Technology (IST), and the Journal of Systems and Software (JSS).
During my PhD, I gained teaching experience as a Teaching Associate in the Faculty of Information Technology at Monash University, working with both undergraduate and postgraduate students. I have also worked as a research assistant at Monash University and the University of Melbourne. Prior to entering academia, I worked as a Senior Software Quality Assurance Engineer. During more than four years in the software industry, I collaborated with diverse stakeholders across multiple countries and contributed to a range of software products, developing valuable practical experience in delivering reliable, high-quality solutions that meet user and organisational needs.
I graduated with a First Class Bachelor of Science (Hons.) degree in Information Systems from the University of Colombo School of Computing, Sri Lanka. I was jointly awarded the Gold Medal for the Best Undergraduate Research Project and received the Silver Award at the National Best Quality Software Awards (NBQSA) for the same project. This achievement led to the opportunity to represent Sri Lanka at the Asia Pacific ICT Alliance Awards (APICTA) in 2018.