- News
New colleagues at the IDTM starting in Summer 2026
07.07.2026 The IDTM team continues to grow. Savindu Herath, Andreas Göldi, Jeffrey Aaron Avila and Nina Oberli are joining the institute.
Savindu Herath
What appeals to me about my new position?
The opportunity to continue my research and teaching within a dynamic and growing educational institution, while collaborating with colleagues and students from diverse disciplinary backgrounds. I feel this is a great setting to build a distinctive scholarly identity for a young scholar like me.
These are my research topics and interests:
With the exponential rise of artificial intelligence (AI), how can AI be designed to improve organizational outcomes and human experiences has been an important question. My research focuses on this intersection of technology, organizations, and people, with particular interests in information systems design and human–AI collaboration.
What I want to achieve at BFH Business School:
More publications, more grants, nurture more students for a great career ahead, build a strong network of friends and colleagues, and maybe a faster marathon time... some measurable KPIs.
What makes me laugh?
When people judge books by their covers and later realize how wrong they were.
Function
Lecturer Tenure Track
Department
Institute for Digital Technology Management, Project Management Lab
Education
Dr. sc. ETH Zürich, MSc ETH
Andreas Göldi
What appeals to me about my new position?
The closer AI systems get to human-level capabilities, the more interesting questions shift from engineering to interaction. BFH is a good place to work on those questions with the pressure of application built in.
These are my research topics and interests:
How people interact with LLM-based agents -- what makes that interaction productive, where psychological theory and coaching practice set the standard, and what breaks when the agent gets more capable, but the interaction design does not keep up.
What I want to achieve at BFH Business School:
A research line in Human-AI Interaction that takes the growing capability of AI systems seriously enough to study how people can actually make good use of them -- before the gap between what the technology can do and what we understand about using it well becomes the main problem.
What makes me laugh?
Absurdity that commits itself without blinking.
Function
Postdoc
Department
Institute for Digital Technology Management, HAIS Lab
Jeffrey Aaron Avila
What appeals to me about my new position?
What draws me to this position is the interdisciplinary lab setup and the freedom to shape my own research. I am looking forward to getting to know the people around me and the topics they work on, understanding their research and where it connects to mine, both in how their work can help me and how mine might help them.
These are my research topics and interests:
My research centers on artificial intelligence, safety, and fairness, applied to education in both formal learning settings and industry and workplace training. I am interested in how language models can be used responsibly to support learning, how we make sure they treat people safely and fairly, and how people can use these tools safely themselves.
What I want to achieve at BFH Business School:
I want to bridge academic research and practical impact by working on a topic that is future-oriented and relevant to society. My research sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, safety, and fairness, and my goal is to produce work that does not just live in papers but actually helps people interact with AI more safely and fairly, whether in formal education or in industry and workplace learning, where the stakes for getting it right are high.
What makes me laugh?
I have a bit of a «Kopfkino». Something small reminds me of a memory or an old joke, and suddenly I am laughing at a scene playing out in my head that no one else can see. It may not always be easy to explain to the people around me, but it keeps everyday life entertaining.
Function
PhD Student
Department
Institute for Digital Technology Management, HAIS Lab
Education
MSc BFH Digital Business Administration, MA. International Banking & Finance
Nina Oberli
What appeals to me about my new position?
I’m excited about this new position because it gives me a fresh challenge. Working in the HERMES Connect Hub opens up new perspectives and lets me grow in a supportive environment.
What I want to achieve at BFH Business School:
I want to learn new things, gain hands-on experience, and build skills that will help me in my future career. I also hope to develop a better understanding of administrative processes and find ways to bring my communication background into the work.
What makes me laugh?
Bad jokes.
Function
Administration HERMES Connect Hub
Department
Institute for Digital Technology Management, HAIS Lab
Education
Currently studying at ZHAW, MA Language and Communication – Strategic Communication Management