Second Line Support

So what is the difference between 1st Line Support, 2nd Line Support and 3rd Line Support?

The technical support function tends to be split into 3 distinct lines only in larger corporate environments - in smaller companies the different lines are combined.

1st Line Support are those engineers tasked with dealing with the end-users directly, so they'll be the first point of contact when users have a problem that needs resolving.  1st Line Support is geared towards capturing the incident details accurately and resolving basic issues that have more to do with lack of understanding than with any actual problem with the business network itself.  However, there are often instances where the confusion is caused by a lack of thought on the part of the system architects rather than a lack of understanding from the users.

2nd Line Support generally deal with the calls logged by 1st Line Support engineers when a technical issue with the business network has been highlighted by one of the users.  2nd line support engineers will be responsible for resolving more complex technical issues.

3rd Line Support will deal with highly complex issues and often are the same people who are responsible for the ongoing development and improvement of the network.

For most of our customers TekMedic provide a fully outsourced solution covering the 1st, 2nd and 3rd line functions - but for some companies this isn't necessarily the best option.

Second Line Support is ALOT cheaper than outsourcing your IT support completely or employing a highly skilled engineer on a full time basis.  But it does require some in-house IT skills.

Is Second Line Support right for you?

You may already have an in-house technical resource, either a single person or a formal team, who are quite capable of dealing with the day-to-day IT support needs of your business.  They will be very familiar with the way you work, your company IT policies and the line-of-business software that you use.  However, while they provide an excellent service to your staff on a daily basis, you may find they are struggling when it comes to more complex issues - and their technical knowledge may not always be broad enough to identify the best way forward. Or you may simply find they don't always have the time.

Scenario 1: You have a small office with 10 staff that use computers.  While your own business is not IT-related, one of your staff is technically quite competent and is able to resolve basic issues on your network that arise on a daily basis.  But what happens when that person is busy with their own work, is on holiday, or simply does not have a deep enough understanding of the IT issues you face?

Scenario 2: You have multiple sites with more than 100 computer users.  Dealing with day-to-day technical support requests from your users is enough to keep an in-house team of engineers busy full-time.  They'll be travelling to different sites picking up PCs and laptops to be repaired, dropping off new equipment for new staff, dealing with printer issues, resetting forgotten passwords, showing users how to use the latest version of MS Outlook, managing user storage quota etc. But you may find as your business grows they are unsure how best to improve your network or rollout new technologies and working practices - you may also find that at some times they are simply too busy and need an additional resource to fall back on.

If either of the above scenarios sounds familiar, give us a call to discuss your Second Line Support options.