Formerly a math teacher and union negotiator at the Mission College, Santa Clara, California, he succeeded his father Harvey Jackins in the role, following the former leader's death in 1999.
Jackins' leadership style within the RC movement has been perceived as different from his better-known father; he does not personally respond to correspondence from large numbers of people and attends fewer workshops and public speaking events.
[citation needed] In recent years, Jackins has made public statements on the 9/11 incident and US government responses to it and on the 2006 Lebanon War, which are displayed in the "IRP" area of the RC web site.
The RC organization reports a need for privacy in connection with the personal lives of the IRP and deputy and publishes no biographical information about them, but it appears that having retired from his job recently.
he is now more closely involved in the day-to-day running of RC, along with his deputy "Alternate International Reference Person" Diane Shisk, who manages the head offices of the organisation in Seattle, Washington.