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Atul Sheel

Associate Professor

Hospitality & Tourism Management
Atul Sheel is an associate professor in the HTM department at the Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He holds a PhD in Finance. His research expertise is in financial

Atul Sheel is an associate professor in the HTM department at the Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He holds a PhD in Finance. His research expertise is in financial modeling, finance, investment, and revenue management within tourism and hospitality. His current research focuses on performance improvement in tourism and hospitality using advanced machine learning, AI & analytics, corporate finance and asset management strategies, and total revenue management (TRM). He has served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Hospitality Financial Management for 27 years, has published and presented extensively in reputed journals/conferences, and has received many scholarly recognitions including the ANBAR Research Scholar Award for excellence in research from the MCB University Press, UK. He has served as HTM’s Associate Department Chair, Graduate Program Director, and Director of the UMass in Singapore Program. He is a past University TEACHnology fellow and the recipient of HTM’s 2023 Kelleher Faculty and Staff Recognition Award.

Education

PhD in Business Administration (Finance), University of Massachusetts-Amherst
MS in Hotel, Restaurant and Travel Administration, University of Massachusetts-Amherst
BSC, University of Delhi, India

Academic Appointments

Associate Professor of Finance and Graduate Faculty, 2001-Present
Doctoral Student Supervisor, 2010-2012
Graduate Program Director - Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA., 2007-2012

Recent Honors / Awards

CDI Fellow – Center for Teaching, University of Massachusetts, 2025
Richard M. ’73 and Nancy S. ’71 Kelleher Faculty and Staff Recognition Award – Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, UMass Amherst, 2023
Isenberg College Outstanding Teacher Award Nominee, 2022
IAHFME Best Paper Award, 2018
Editor, Journal of Hospitality Financial Management (JHFM) - Official refereed journal of the Association of Hospitality Financial Management Education - AHFME, 1996 - 2023
Howdy Award, Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, 2009
TEACHnology Fellow – University of Massachusetts, 2004 - 2005
ANBAR Research Scholar and Certificate for Excellence in Research, 2000

Research Interests

Total Revenue Management
Multi-Stream Revenue and Performance Optimization
Advanced Machine Learning and Predictive Analytics for Performance Improvement
Modern Corporate Finance & Hospitality Asset Management
Financial Leverage and Dividend policy
Working Capital Policy and Liquidity Management
Hotel Valuation
Asset-Light Strategy

Teaching Interests

Undergraduate
  • Revenue Management
  • Hospitality Real Estate Investment
  • Advanced Hospitality Financial Decision Making
Masters
  • Corporate Finance
Doctoral
  • Seminar in Hospitality Research

Selected Publications

Seth, D., Sheel, A., Onder, I. and Uysal, M. (2026). Cross-border tourism in North America: A hybrid deep learning framework with macroeconomic indicators, Tourism Management, Volume 113, April 2026, 105320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2025.105320

Pawar, A., Gholap, R. and Sheel, A. (2019). Strategic Effect of Degree of Operating Leverage on Value Premium of Lodging Firms. The Journal of Hospitality Financial Management, Volume 27, Issue 1.  https://doi.org/10.7275/2zz5-ey49

Sheel, A. (2016). SCP-relevance and class-effect in performance–A comparative analysis of restaurants and petroleum firms. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 52, 33-45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2015.09.012