<P> With the increasing use of technology in modern times, there is a growing requirement to provide technical support . Many organizations locate their technical support departments or call centers in countries or regions with lower costs . Dell was amongst the first companies to outsource their technical support and customer service departments to India in 2001 . There has also been a growth in companies specializing in providing technical support to other organizations . These are often referred to as MSPs (Managed Service Providers). </P> <P> For businesses needing to provide technical support, outsourcing allows them to maintain a high availability of service . Such need may result from peaks in call volumes during the day, periods of high activity due to introduction of new products or maintenance service packs, or the requirement to provide customers with a high level of service at a low cost to the business . For businesses needing technical support assets, outsourcing enables their core employees to focus more on their work in order to maintain productivity . It also enables them to utilize specialized personnel whose technical knowledge base and experience may exceed the scope of the business, thus providing a higher level of technical support to their employees . </P> <P> Technical support is often subdivided into tiers, or levels, in order to better serve a business or customer base . The number of levels a business uses to organize their technical support group is dependent on a business' needs regarding their ability to sufficiently serve their customers or users . The reason for providing a multi-tiered support system instead of one general support group is to provide the best possible service in the most efficient possible manner . Success of the organizational structure is dependent on the technicians' understanding of their level of responsibility and commitments, their customer response time commitments, and when to appropriately escalate an issue and to which level . A common support structure revolves around a three - tiered technical support system . </P> <P> Tier 0 (or self - help) is in the form of "wikis" or FAQs that allow for users to access and resolve information on their own rather than have to contact a local Helpdesk or Service Desk for resolution . </P>

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