Class 1

Introduction to Accounting and Finance Analytics

Thursday, April 2, 2026

Class Overview

Why is this important?

This class will provide students with a foundational understanding of how data analytics can be applied in accounting and finance contexts.

What will we do?

This class will introduce the course and provide an overview of the key themes and topics we will cover. We will discuss the role of analytics in accounting and finance, and how emerging technologies are transforming these fields. We will also review the course structure, deliverables, and expectations. We will discuss the type of data analyzed in accounting and finance fields and the types of problems that are commonly addressed. Finally, we will introduce the first case, which will be focused on descriptive analytics and data visualization in accounting and finance. The case is a set of practical exercises to introduce the data from an accounting information systems perspective focusing on transaction analysis.

Materials and Preparation

Class Materials
  • Case: Analytics_mindset_case_studies_PSU_Hotel_background
  • Case: Analytics_mindset_case_studies_PSU_Hotel_understanding_audit_analytics
  • Case: Analytics_mindset_case_studies_PSU_Hotel_Revenue
  • Slides: PowerPoint or PDF
  • Data: The data for this case is preloaded into the tool, you are welcome to export it an explore it in another software. It is based on a real hotel transaction dataset that includes typical data seen in accounting and finance settings, such as transactional details, timestamps, amounts, and categorical information about the transactions.
  • Analytics Tools: Tableau
  • Suggested in-class seating: Teams
  • Suggested Pre-Class Preparation
    1. I will go over the syllabus in class, you are welcome to look at it in advance, or wait until class.
    2. You are not expected to read the cases in advance, but you can skim them or get your favorite LLM to summarize them for you. The cases are used as a reference for the transaction analytics activities we will do as a class, and provide more detail than we require to complete the case in class.
    3. When you get to class I recommend sitting with your teams as we will have a preliminary discussion about the final team project.
  • Class Plan
    1. I'll introduce myself and then after a brief ice-breaker I will cover the syllabus and course structure.
    2. Using a brief interactive lecture format, I will introduce the main themes of the course and how they relate to the cases and deliverables.
    3. You will have a chance to discuss this with your peers and ask any questions you have about the course.
    4. I will use PollEverywhere to collect responses to some questions about the course and the material, and to encourage discussion.
    5. We will then start our first case. The goal of the first case is to introduce data seen by accounting and finance professionals at the transaction level. We will use a pre-built tool that helps summarize and aggregate the data to a useful level for data visualization and descriptive analysis.
    6. We will work through the case together at first and then you will work in small groups to prepare your individual deliverables in class (a short memo responding to a question I will raise in class and screenshot of the tool).
    7. Finally, we will conclude the case with a short debrief.

Required Deliverables

Deliverable Due Date Canvas Submission Portal
Professionalism (individual): Helix Memo Submission During Class Upload to Canvas