Mary MacAusland, CPA, Ph.D., is a senior lecturer at the Nolan School of Hotel Administration in the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, where she teaches courses in financial and managerial accounting and financial statement analysis. Prior to joining Cornell, Professor MacAusland was actively engaged in both academe and industry, serving in senior positions in several organizations. She was previously on the faculty at the University of New Hampshire and Franklin and Marshall College, and taught for several years at a small community college. Professor MacAusland also worked in the life-care management and development field as a controller and has held numerous positions with the United States Tennis Association (USTA), most recently as vice-chair of the audit committee. She served on the executive boards of USTA Middle States and the Berks County Chapter of the American Red Cross for many years and chaired several special events, raising significant amounts for local charities. Professor MacAusland was also a longtime member of the investment committee for the Berks County Community Foundation, where she helped to establish investment guidelines and monitor performance for $50 million in managed assets and was integral in establishing a permanent fund with the foundation to provide grants for tennis programs for at-risk youth.
Hospitality Financial Decision‑MakingImmersion Program
Course Overview
This on campus immersion program at Cornell University’s Nolan School of Hotel Administration in Ithaca, NY will provide an application of financial and managerial concepts useful in analyzing hospitality operations. Throughout this course, you’ll examine how the recent challenges from the pandemic placed a much greater emphasis on the need to understand and analyze financial data and cost behavior. With this in mind, you’ll learn how to use financial statement analysis tools to increase profitability within your organization and apply techniques to make more strategic operational decisions. After three intensive in-person days of active discussions with global colleagues, you’ll be well-versed in operational analysis terms used by owners and operators, and will be able to effectively communicate and interpret revenue and cost data from a general manager’s perspective.
Key Course Takeaways
- Assess the key determinants of profitability, financial position, and cash flows from the financial statements
- Apply financial statement analysis tools to increase profitability within your operations
- Discover techniques to make more strategic operational decisions about costs, volume, profit, and pricing
- Examine how key metrics in the lodging industry link to the results reported in the financial statements
- Differentiate between operating and capital budgets and understand the trend toward fixed costs
- Interpret and communicate your observations from financial reports and cost data with confidence

How It Works
Ithaca, NY
Ithaca, NY
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Course Author
Who Should Enroll
- Hospitality professionals who need to make financial decisions for their organization or department
- Hospitality professionals looking to move into a director role
- Hospitality professionals looking to move into a finance role
- Hospitality owners and operators

What You'll Earn
- Hospitality Financial Decision-Making Certificate from Cornell’s Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration
- 24 Professional Development Hours (2.4 CEUs)
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