Prior to assuming the office of Director General of the EAJC, Dr. Chaim Ben Yakov headed the Jewish Agency representation in Moscow and the Baltic States, and served as an educational adviser to the Jewish Agency in Israel.

Dr. Chaim Ben Yakov established and led the Institute for Jewish Studies and Community Leadership Training in Moscow, and chaired the panel "World Jewish Diaspora from the Former Soviet Union - Modern Challenges" at the Herzliya Conference.

Dr. Chaim Ben Yakov's academic interests encompass traditional Jewish rituals across historical periods, the principles of nation-state formation and national-cultural identity, the dynamics between universal and particular cultural values, the structure of Israeli society and the Jewish diaspora, and the history of Zionism.