What is DCH?
DCH is an international organization of human resources managers, based and headquartered in Madrid. It brings together directors and human resources managers from various companies, and its focus is on developing the human capital function, not on occupational health and safety. This profile is available on Sabentis Explore because DCH is part of the institutional advisory committee of the ORP International Foundation, not because it carries out its own preventative activities.
It is important to distinguish its nature: DCH is a professional organization of HR managers, not a professional association with regulatory authority, nor a public body, nor an occupational health and safety entity. It does not dictate labor regulations nor does it have jurisdiction over risk prevention.
Purpose and scope of action
DCH has a presence in Spain, Portugal, several Latin American countries, and the United States, and since September 2025, also in France, following the launch of DCH France as part of a regional initiative integrating France, Spain, and Portugal under the DCH Europe framework. According to its website, the organization comprises more than 3,500 human capital managers, of which more than 1,500 are based in Spain.
In 2024 it celebrated its tenth anniversary, with an event called DCH Fest dedicated to reviewing a decade of activity around leadership and talent.
Functions and main lines of work
DCH’s activity is organized into several stable lines.
- Meetings between managers. It organizes conferences, seminars and workshops, in person, online and hybrid, for the exchange of experiences among human capital directors.
- Barometric studies. It develops annual barometers on talent management and digitization of human resources, in collaboration with universities.
- HR Tech Hub. It maintains a center that connects human resources technology startups with investors.
- Young Talent Center. It develops, together with the International Youth Organization for Ibero-America, programs aimed at the development of young professionals.
- Center for Women’s Leadership. Promotes a professional community dedicated to the development of women’s leadership in organizations.
Connection with occupational safety and health
DCH is not an occupational health and safety organization and does not develop its own occupational risk prevention programs. Its connection to occupational health and safety is indirect and lies in the area of human resource management: the decisions made by human capital managers regarding work organization, leadership , change management, and work-life balance policies affect factors that the preventive discipline does address directly, such as psychosocial factors at work and employee well-being .
For this reason, DCH is listed in this encyclopedia without being attributed any powers, programs or results in the area of occupational risk prevention that are not found in its institutional sources.
Relationship with the ORP International Foundation
DCH’s presence on the ORP International Foundation’s institutional advisory committee should not be confused with accreditation in occupational safety and health: DCH is an international organization of people management executives, originating in Madrid and with a presence in Portugal, Latin America, the United States and, since 2025, France, whose purpose is not the prevention of occupational risks.
Practical application
For a prevention professional, the value of DCH lies not in its technical occupational health and safety content, which doesn’t exist as such, but in its role as a meeting point with company human resources management. Many decisions that influence an organization’s actual working conditions , workloads, work-life balance policies, and the digitalization of people processes are made at this management level, and understanding this helps to situate prevention within the broader conversation about people management.
