• Type I – Internal service provider: This is the in-house IT unit typically
positioned within the business units they serve, although it is common for these smaller scale IT units to be consolidated into a corporate IT department that has to balance the interests, demands and priorities of the corporate
organisation against those of individual business units.
• Type II – Shared services unit: This is where a range of functions, regarded as non-core to the business, are grouped together into a corporate shared service unit. The functions involved are typically IT, Finance and HR, sometimes with legal service, logistics and facilities management.
• Type III – External service provider: This is a separate commercial entity from the businesses it services, and operates as a competitive business in the marketplace.