It's a GAAS-GAAS-GAAS!

When the day ends at Stout, Causey & Horning, accounting takes a back seat to rock and roll

member spotlight

Donkey Show
House band, Stout, Causey & Horning

By Bill Sheridan
Statement Editor

HUNT VALLEY — It's one of the fastest growing CPA firms in the country, but nobody rocks harder than Stout, Causey & Horning.

The Hunt Valley-based firm prides itself on its accounting acumen, having earned spots among the country's top firms in recent lists compiled by Accounting Today, Bowman's Accounting Report and others.

But its staff plays as hard as it works, and the soundtrack for the fun comes from the firm's own house band, Donkey Show.

Now about three years old, the band consists of eight Stout, Causey & Horning employees:

Raj Chaudhury, CPA, a manager at the firm and lead guitarist;
Jeff Stavely, CPA (manager / percussion);
Jeff Binford (in-charge auditor / drums);
Nicole Bowers (associate staff auditor / vocals);
Brian Grimm (in-charge accountant / rhythm guitar);
Jeff Klima (senior auditor / vocals);
Chris Torralba (network administrator / rhythm guitar); and
Ryan Warner (manager / bass).

They're not giving up their day jobs, but they're no slouches on stage, either. The band's set list ranges from rock classics from the Rolling Stones and Neil Young to modern-rock covers of Stone Temple Pilots and No Doubt.

The top priority, though, is to have fun.

"It's definitely not your typical rock star lifestyle — we don't tear apart hotel rooms or anything like that," said Chaudhury. "Really, it's just part and parcel of the firm's culture as a whole. We have a lot of fun together as a firm, and the band is just one aspect of that."

Talent to spare

The band was born of that culture. At Managing Partner Tom Stout's urging, Grimm and Warner brought their guitars to an after-hours get-together a few years ago and entertained the staff from the firm's spacious deck that overlooks Beaver Dam. The music was like a magnet for the firm's other musicians, and soon the idea of forming a band surfaced.

"We came to realize that several of us had musical backgrounds," said Klima, who once played in a band that opened for such national acts as De La Soul and Parliament / Funkadelic. "Tom found out and the firm ended up funding the purchase of speakers, cables, drums and microphones, and we took it from there."

Finding eight stage-ready musicians among a staff of 165 proved surprisingly easy: Grimm and Warner had played guitar together for more than 10 years; Bowers studied opera in college and sings in another band on weekends; Binford has played in at least 15 different bands through the years. For some reason, the firm seems to have attracted musicians to its staff.

"It's one thing to be a musician behind the scenes, practicing at home. It's another to actually be willing to perform in front of people," Chaudhury said. "That's what surprises me — that we have musicians at the firm who are willing to perform in front of other people. It's a drastically different world from playing in your basement."

'A great release'

The firm's "work hard, play hard" culture includes a casual dress code, firm-sponsored sports teams and frequent opportunities for the staff to get together and blow off steam — Friday afternoon "happy hours," holiday and post-tax season parties, and summer picnics, to name a few.

The band performs at nearly all of the firm's functions — and occasionally shares the stage with some unexpected guests. At a memorable recent gathering, firm Vice President Ron Causey joined the band on stage and belted out the Rolling Stones' classic "Satisfaction."

"It's great to be able to get together with not only your co-workers but your friends and just be yourself," Klima said. "It's hard work during the day, but when the time comes everyone is on a first-name basis and at a real personable level. It's just a great release."

"Every performance kind of becomes part of the story," Chaudhury said. "One of the hallmarks of this firm is its culture and how we have a lot of fun. This band is an outgrowth of that."

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