Twin CPAs Share Unique Bond From Childhood to Accounting

Jesse and Chris Stoop, identical twins, grew up playing the same sports and ultimately chose identical career paths. Jesse is a senior audit manager at CohnReznick LLP, and Chris is an audit manager at EisnerAmper LLP. They have both been with their respective firms for nine years, and both are CPAs.

Jesse is four minutes older than Chris: "I joke that I had four minutes of freedom" before Chris was born. Chris says they're "two peas in a pod." They're competitive when it comes to sports and push each other professionally.

Growing Up Together

Even in their competitiveness, they always encouraged and pushed each other to be better athletes. In high school, the Stoop brothers participated in wrestling, track, skiing and baseball. But they were never rivals. "We never had to compete for one spot. There was always room for both of us to play," said Jesse. Their athletic pursuits were even documented in an Asbury Park Press feature article. The twin brothers continued to play together as defensive backs for their college football team.

The Stoop brothers say being twins comes with more positives than negatives. "You always have someone to play with or fight with. We always had that special bond. It was always good to have a partner in crime," said Chris. When their family moved from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, for instance, Jesse and Chris leaned on each other to adapt to the change.

They don't take it personally when people mistake their names. "I have an aunt (78) to this day who says, 'Chris, right?' and I say, 'No, it's Jesse.'" The brothers like to occasionally pretend they are the other twin, to playfully confuse people. "When someone comes up to me saying they know me, I sometimes like to joke and say, 'I'm sorry, but I've never met you before,'" said Jesse.

Their Accounting Journeys

Jesse didn't plan to major in accounting. "I didn't go to Fairleigh [Dickinson University] intending to be an accounting major, but I took the first basic class [in accounting] and realized it was interesting. There were a bunch of accounting firms at a career fair I attended as a freshman. I wasn't looking for a job, but all these people were looking to hire me. So I took more classes and found that I really liked it," said Jesse. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and then went on to earn a Master of Science in Accounting at Fairleigh.

Chris was a marketing major during his undergraduate years. After a few internships, Chris realized he wanted to take a different career direction. "I did a lot of internships in the finance field and realized the finance route wasn't what I was interested in, so that's when I started to learn more about accounting … That's when I made the switch by getting a master's in accounting," said Chris. After the brothers attained their graduate degrees, they passed the CPA exam within a year of each other.

Jesse says that one benefit of having a twin brother in the same profession is that they can give each other insights. When they have questions or need advice about navigating a situation at work, they often lean on each other for support.

Life Today

The comradery between the Stoop brothers has continued into adulthood. They live within 10 minutes of each other and are involved with NJCPA volunteer activities. Jesse has been part of the Student Programs & Scholarships Committee for the past four years. Chris is now president of the Mercer Chapter. Both brothers are married, and Jesse has two children.

Chris says, "We were brothers in the backroom, and now we're brothers in the boardroom. It's come full circle, in a much different environment."