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Chris Hesse

Chris Hesse

Principal, Federal Tax Resource Group
LarsonAllen
Minneapolis, MN

 

Chris Hesse comes from a long line of farmers. He actually was the first male in his family to leave the family farm. “Fortunately, looking back on it now, my allergies wouldn't allow me to farm; I had to do something else,” he says. But he had no exposure to any other career.

Wanting to help people and do something cool, Chris thought becoming a policeman or federal law enforcement officer might just be the ticket. But it wasn’t the right fit. He had taken a bookkeeping class in high school and enjoyed it, so Chris switched his major. “I could always be a policeman with an accounting degree, but I couldn't be a CPA with a criminology degree,” he says.

Chris wasn’t sure what a career in accounting had in store for him, but it has fit him perfectly so far. “Don't expect to be in a cubicle crunching numbers,” he says. “That's not what we do.”

Anything but boring, Chris has bungee jumped several times, taking three of his four children with him. “We've done zip lines and been in a hot air balloon.” Chris has bicycled more than 100 miles in a day on three occasions and climbed multiple mountains, including Mount Adams in Washington and Long’s Peak in Colorado.

When he is not hanging off a mountain with his wife and children, Chris actively finds solutions and solves tax problems for his clients. “I research, plan and defend clients against the IRS and Department of Revenue,” he says. ”CPAs in public accounting succeed by working with people to help them solve their business problems.”

Chris is immersed in politics and current events.”Ultimately, what happens in politics eventually becomes a tax issue,” he says.”I always have tax issues on my plate, either researching or planning.” And he enjoys it.

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Stats at a Glance

Years as a CPA: 32

Best job: Tax planning with clients

Worst job: Repairing farm equipment in 100 degrees

Hobbies outside of work: History, bicycling

Words to live by: "Question conventional wisdom. It often leads to unintended consequences."