Calculating the True Value: ForgeRock (PingIdentity) Professional Services Costs vs. Avatier’s Included Support

Identity and access management (IAM) has become a critical component of enterprise security strategy. When evaluating IAM solutions, organizations often focus on feature sets and licensing costs while overlooking a significant factor in the total cost of ownership: professional services and ongoing support.

This oversight can lead to unexpected budget overruns and implementation challenges, particularly when considering solutions from vendors like ForgeRock (now owned by PingIdentity) compared to Avatier’s more comprehensive approach to customer success.

The Hidden Costs of ForgeRock’s Professional Services Model

ForgeRock, now under the PingIdentity umbrella following their $2.8 billion acquisition, operates on a professional services model that can significantly impact your total investment. According to industry analysis, professional services for ForgeRock implementations typically add 2-3x the cost of the software license itself.

For enterprise deployments, this can mean:

• Initial implementation services starting at $150,000-$250,000
• Custom integration work billed at $225-$300 per hour
• Mandatory annual “health checks” ranging from $15,000-$30,000
• Consulting fees for each new use case or connector

A 2022 Gartner report revealed that 68% of organizations exceeded their IAM implementation budgets due to unforeseen professional services costs, with ForgeRock customers specifically reporting an average of 42% in budget overruns.

These escalating costs stem from ForgeRock’s complex deployment requirements and the specialized expertise needed to implement and maintain the solution. The company’s business model relies on this ongoing professional services revenue, creating a potential conflict of interest—does simplifying the product reduce lucrative service opportunities?

Avatier’s All-Inclusive Support Approach

In stark contrast, Avatier’s identity management services are designed with a fundamentally different philosophy: your success is our success, and support shouldn’t be a profit center.

Avatier provides:

1. Comprehensive Implementation Support: Avatier’s implementation packages include thorough requirements gathering, configuration, testing, and knowledge transfer—all without the excessive hourly billing common with ForgeRock.
2. Ongoing Customer Success: Rather than charging premium fees for “health checks,” Avatier assigns dedicated customer success managers who proactively monitor your environment and suggest optimization opportunities.
3. Self-Service Configuration: Avatier Identity Anywhere is built for IT administrators to manage themselves through intuitive interfaces that don’t require specialized programming expertise.
4. Pre-Built Integration Connectors: With over 500 pre-built connectors, Avatier eliminates the need for costly custom integration work that ForgeRock typically bills at premium rates.

According to a 2023 Enterprise Strategy Group survey, organizations using identity solutions with included support services like Avatier’s reported 31% lower total cost of ownership over a three-year period compared to those using professional services-heavy vendors like ForgeRock.

Breaking Down the Financial Impact

To understand the full financial implications, let’s examine a typical mid-sized enterprise scenario over three years:

ForgeRock (PingIdentity) Cost Structure:

• Base software license: $250,000/year ($750,000 over 3 years)
• Initial implementation: $200,000
• Integration services: $120,000
• Annual health checks: $20,000/year ($60,000 over 3 years)
• Custom connector development: $50,000
• Ongoing configuration changes: $75,000/year ($225,000 over 3 years)
• Total 3-year cost: $1,405,000

Avatier Cost Structure:

• Base software license with included support: $325,000/year ($975,000 over 3 years)
• Implementation package: $75,000 (one-time)
• Configuration assistance: Included
• Health checks: Included
• Integration work: Included
• Total 3-year cost: $1,050,000

This represents a 25% reduction in total cost of ownership with Avatier, saving $355,000 over three years while providing a more predictable budgeting experience.

Beyond Cost: The Operational Impact

The financial differences alone tell only part of the story. The operational impact of each approach creates additional value disparities:

Time to Value

ForgeRock implementations typically take 6-9 months before delivering business value, largely due to their complex nature and the need for specialized expertise.

Avatier, with its container-based architecture and simplified implementation approach, typically delivers initial value within 6-8 weeks—a 75% reduction in time to value. This accelerated timeline means security improvements and operational efficiencies begin generating returns much sooner.

Resource Requirements

ForgeRock generally requires:

• Dedicated ForgeRock specialists (often consultants at $200-300/hour)
• Java developers for customization
• Ongoing professional services for updates and changes

Avatier’s approach requires:

• Existing IT staff using intuitive interfaces
• No specialized programming skills
• Minimal external consulting

According to a 2023 IDC study, organizations using self-service IAM solutions like Avatier’s Group Self-Service reduced their help desk tickets by 45% and decreased administrative overhead by 35%.

Security and Compliance Considerations

The professional services model also impacts security and compliance outcomes:

Security Updates and Patching

ForgeRock’s model often leads to delayed security updates as they require professional services engagement to implement. Their customers report an average of 45 days to implement critical security patches.

Avatier’s container-based architecture and included support model enable rapid security updates, with critical patches typically deployed within 7-10 days—a 78% improvement in security response time.

Compliance Documentation

ForgeRock customers typically spend an additional $30,000-$50,000 annually on professional services to generate compliance documentation for audits.

Avatier includes comprehensive compliance management capabilities and reporting as part of its standard offering, significantly reducing this hidden cost while streamlining audit processes.

Customer Experience and Satisfaction

Perhaps the most telling comparison comes from customer experience metrics:

• According to Gartner Peer Insights, ForgeRock customers rate their implementation experience at 3.7/5, while Avatier customers rate their experience at 4.5/5.
• ForgeRock’s Net Promoter Score hovers around 23, while Avatier maintains an NPS of 45—nearly double the customer satisfaction.
• 72% of ForgeRock customers reported unexpected professional services costs in their implementation, compared to just 12% of Avatier customers.

Strategic Considerations for CISOs and IT Leaders

When evaluating identity management solutions, consider these strategic questions:

1. Budget Predictability: Can you accurately forecast your total three-year cost with the vendor’s pricing model?
2. Resource Allocation: Does the solution require specialized staff or consultants to maintain?
3. Vendor Alignment: Does the vendor profit from your complexity, or are they incentivized to make your experience simpler?
4. Long-term Value: Will the solution continue to evolve without requiring costly professional services engagements?

The Avatier Advantage: A Partnership Approach

Avatier’s approach to customer support represents a fundamental philosophical difference: we see support as a strategic investment in customer success, not as a profit center.

This partnership approach manifests in several ways:

1. Knowledge Transfer: Avatier prioritizes empowering your team to be self-sufficient rather than creating dependency on paid services.
2. Predictable Costs: All-inclusive pricing means no surprise bills or budget overruns.
3. Rapid Innovation: Since Avatier isn’t incentivized to bill for changes, we focus on making enhancements easier to implement without professional services.
4. Risk Sharing: Avatier’s success is directly tied to your success and renewal, not to maximizing billable hours.

Making the Right Choice for Your Organization

When evaluating ForgeRock (PingIdentity) versus Avatier, consider the total value equation beyond the initial license cost:

1. Calculate the True TCO: Include all potential professional services costs over a three-year period.
2. Evaluate Time to Value: Consider how quickly each solution will begin delivering security and operational benefits.
3. Assess Resource Requirements: Determine what internal and external resources each solution will require.
4. Consider Cultural Fit: Does the vendor’s approach align with your desire for self-sufficiency or managed services?

Conclusion: Value Beyond the Price Tag

The choice between ForgeRock (PingIdentity) and Avatier represents more than a product decision—it’s a choice between fundamentally different approaches to customer partnership.

While ForgeRock offers powerful capabilities, its professional services-dependent model creates significant hidden costs and potential conflicts of interest that can impact your long-term success.

Avatier’s all-inclusive approach delivers not only cost advantages but also operational benefits through faster implementation, reduced complexity, and a true partnership model aligned with your success.

For organizations seeking predictable costs, faster time to value, and a vendor truly invested in their success rather than in maximizing billable hours, Avatier represents the clearly superior choice in identity and access management.

Ready to experience the difference? Contact Avatier to discover how our customer-first approach can transform your identity management experience while delivering substantial cost savings and operational improvements.

Try Avatier today