Course spotlight: Hospitality Finance with Dr. Yang (Tisch Center)

Hospitality Finance is a core course in the MS in Hospitality Industry Studies, which teaches students how to analyze and interpret financial statements and create operational and capital budgets. Dr. Jing Yang tells us more about the course in this post.

What is your background?

Before joining the Tisch Center, I taught finance-oriented classes in another institution and worked closely with graduate students. My industry experiences include international marketing/P.R. in China and hotel operations in U.S.

At the Tisch Center, you teach the Hospitality Finance course. What are the objectives of the course? 

This course is an examination of financial statements and processes that establish fiscal responsibility and accountability in the hospitality industry. Analyzing the financial background of a business provides insights about managing and financing effectively. In this course, the subjects to be examined include: time value of money, analysis of financial statements, capital budgeting, budgeting and forecasting for short- and long-term economic events, debt and equity management, project financing, risk management, investment strategies, working capital analysis, and financial modeling. 

Why are you interested in this specific topic? 

When I was working on my PhD and Master degrees, my chosen focus area was hospitality finance. For example, I have looked at how marketing efforts enhance the business and help it gain interest for investors. I also researched the effects of Mergers & Acquisitions, specifically in U.S. hotels. 

What impact do you hope to have on your students through this course?    

Through this course, I want my students to gain a solid understanding of fundamental mechanics of corporate finance, e.g., what are capital budgeting and capital structure. Depending upon the makeup of each class, I customize the delivery and content to best suit their interests and backgrounds.

Is there anything else you’d like to share? 

During the first week of orientation, I often ask students why they want to take the course and to share their background so it helps me to tailor the course material. For example, last semester many students were interested in the restaurant and airline industries. I let them choose an in-depth public company analysis. However, this semester most students are interested in hotels, and so we will use a hotel case analysis. I keep my class as fluid/applied as possible while maintaining academic rigor and objectives.