Before joining the faculty of The Hebrew University in 2011, Gili served as Director of IR Honors Program and taught at Stanford University for a decade. Gili held numerous positions of academic leadership, also elected to serve as President of the Israeli Sociological Society.

Gili’s publications speak to her research focus on global and comparative sociology: the study of globalization, its impact of states, societies, and organizations worldwide, and especially the global diffusion of ideas and practices. Among the issues she studies are academia and education; organization, management, and governance; and higher education, science, and innovation.

Currently, she is studying the global scope and historical redefinitions of the institutions of the state and of the university. Regarding the state, she is researching the expansion of the state’s social responsibilities and the state’s position in global governance. Regarding the university, she is studying managerial and governance processes in universities, the organizational identity and strategy of higher education organizations, and the public role of academia. For such studies she draws on global data and institutionalist methods, also situating Israeli organizations within such global context.  

His research interests are the scaling of start-ups and science-based ventures, as well as how new digital technologies affect entrepreneurs, workers, and activists. His work has been published in journals such as Academy of Management Discoveries, Academy of Management Journal and Journal of Management Studies.