This paper describes a program of empirical HRD research conducted as part of an ''HRD Professional Partnership'' set within an NHS Trust Hospital in the UK. The research was concerned with identifying the criteria of managerial effectiveness applying at the middle and front line levels of management within the particular case study setting using Critical Incident Technique and Factor Analysis methods. The results were compared against those from an equivalent study carried out within HM Customs & Excise, a major department of the British Civil Service. The findings lend support to the existence of the ''universally effective manager'', and provide an empirical base suitable for supporting developments towards evidence-based management and research-informed HRD practice.
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