Future-Proof Flexibility: Why Avatier Configuration Beats ForgeRock (PingIdentity) Coding

Businesses need strong identity management solutions that are flexible enough to meet changing business needs, new security threats, and increasingly complex compliance regulations. As enterprises compare identity governance and administration (IGA) platforms, a critical decision point emerges: should you choose a highly configurable solution or one that requires extensive coding and customization?

ForgeRock (now owned by Ping Identity) has long advocated for its flexible development approach, but this flexibility comes with significant costs in implementation, maintenance, and long-term sustainability. Avatier’s configuration-first approach presents a compelling alternative that delivers rapid deployment, lower total cost of ownership, and superior business agility—without sacrificing capability or security.

The Hidden Costs of Code-Heavy Identity Solutions

ForgeRock’s platform offers extensive customization through coding, which might initially seem appealing to organizations with unique requirements. However, this approach brings several challenges that often become apparent only after implementation begins:

1. Extended Implementation Timelines

According to Gartner’s 2023 Market Guide for Identity Governance and Administration, code-heavy identity management implementations take an average of 18-24 months to fully deploy, compared to 6-9 months for highly configurable solutions. This extended timeline translates directly to delayed ROI and prolonged exposure to identity-related security risks.

ForgeRock implementations frequently require specialized developers proficient in Java and their proprietary frameworks. These resources are both expensive and scarce, further extending project timelines as organizations compete for limited talent.

2. Higher Total Cost of Ownership

The development-centric approach substantially increases total cost of ownership (TCO) in multiple ways:

• Initial Development Costs: Custom code development requires more hours from higher-cost resources.
• Ongoing Maintenance: Custom code must be maintained, documented, and updated whenever the core platform changes.
• Knowledge Dependency: Organizations become dependent on the specific developers who built the customizations, creating risk when those resources leave.

Research from Forrester reveals that organizations using highly configurable identity platforms report 40% lower three-year TCO compared to code-heavy alternatives, largely attributable to reduced professional services and internal resource requirements.

3. Upgrade Complexity

Perhaps the most significant drawback of extensive customization is the impact on future upgrades. Each platform upgrade requires testing and potentially reworking custom code to ensure compatibility with the new version. This challenge often leads to:

• Delayed upgrades and extended periods running outdated software
• Higher risk exposure due to security vulnerabilities in older versions
• Increased cost for each upgrade cycle
• “Version lock” where upgrading becomes too costly or risky to undertake

In contrast, Avatier’s Identity Management Architecture is designed for configurability rather than customization, ensuring that organizations can adapt their identity processes without creating technical debt that hampers future agility.

Avatier’s Configuration-First Advantage

Avatier’s platform represents a fundamentally different approach to identity governance and administration, focusing on configuration rather than coding. This approach delivers several distinct advantages:

1. No-Code/Low-Code Configuration

Avatier provides comprehensive capabilities through configuration rather than coding, enabling business analysts and identity administrators to implement and modify workflows without developer involvement. This approach:

• Reduces dependency on specialized technical resources
• Accelerates implementation timelines
• Lowers overall project costs
• Empowers business owners to directly influence identity processes

The Avatier Identity Management Suite (AIMS) includes visual workflow designers and pre-built connectors that eliminate the need for custom code in the vast majority of implementations.

2. Faster Time to Value

Organizations implementing Avatier typically achieve full deployment in 50-70% less time than comparable ForgeRock implementations. This accelerated timeline delivers:

• Faster realization of security improvements
• Earlier compliance with regulatory requirements
• Quicker ROI and business value
• Reduced project risk and resource consumption

A 2023 industry analysis by KuppingerCole found that organizations using configuration-based identity platforms reported an average of 63% faster implementation times compared to code-centric platforms.

3. Sustainable Long-Term Operations

Avatier’s architecture ensures that configurations persist through upgrades, dramatically reducing the overhead of keeping systems current with the latest security and feature improvements. This sustainability provides:

• Lower upgrade costs and effort
• Faster adoption of new security capabilities
• Reduced risk exposure from outdated software
• Better long-term alignment with evolving business needs

Real-World Scenario: Adapting to Regulatory Changes

To illustrate the practical difference between ForgeRock and Avatier approaches, consider how each platform handles a common enterprise challenge: adapting to new regulatory requirements.

The Challenge: Implementing SOX 404 Controls

When organizations need to implement new controls for Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 compliance, the response differs dramatically between platforms:

ForgeRock Approach:

1. Engage developers to analyze requirements
2. Design custom code solution for new approval workflows
3. Develop and test custom code
4. Deploy to production
5. Create custom reports and attestation processes
6. Document custom code for future maintenance

This process typically takes 3-6 months and requires specialized developer resources throughout.

Avatier Approach:

1. Configure new approval workflows using the visual workflow designer
2. Implement attestation campaigns using built-in tools
3. Configure compliance reports using the reporting engine
4. Test and deploy configurations

With Avatier’s SOX Compliance Solutions, this process typically requires 2-4 weeks and can be performed by identity administrators without developer involvement.

Future-Proofing Your Identity Strategy

Perhaps the most compelling reason to choose configuration over coding is the rapidly evolving nature of identity requirements. Consider these emerging trends that will impact your identity governance approach:

1. Zero-Trust Architecture Implementation

Zero-trust principles are rapidly becoming the standard for enterprise security. Implementing these principles requires adaptive, context-aware identity controls that can evaluate risk in real-time.

ForgeRock’s coding approach requires building custom risk evaluation frameworks and integration points, creating substantial development and maintenance overhead as zero-trust standards evolve.

Avatier’s platform includes configurable risk-based authentication and authorization capabilities that can be adjusted to implement zero-trust principles without coding. As standards evolve, configurations can be updated without redevelopment.

2. AI/ML Integration for Identity Intelligence

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are transforming identity governance through anomaly detection, risk-based access decisions, and automated provisioning recommendations.

ForgeRock requires custom development to integrate with AI/ML services and implement appropriate response actions based on intelligence findings.

Avatier’s platform includes built-in integration capabilities for AI/ML services with configurable response actions, enabling organizations to leverage identity intelligence without custom development.

3. Workforce Evolution and Remote Work

The rapid shift toward hybrid work models has permanently changed identity requirements, emphasizing the need for flexible, adaptive controls that balance security with user experience.

ForgeRock implementations often require code modifications to adapt to new work patterns, access requirements, and security models.

Avatier’s configurable approach enables rapid adjustment to changing workforce models without code changes, ensuring that security policies can evolve alongside work practices.

Customer Success: Configuration vs. Coding

A Fortune 500 financial services organization recently switched from ForgeRock to Avatier after experiencing the limitations of a code-heavy approach:

“With our previous identity solution, every change required developer resources and lengthy project timelines. After three years, we were still running the original version because upgrading would require rebuilding all our customizations. With Avatier, we implemented in under six months what had taken us 18 months with our previous vendor, and we’ve been able to adapt to new requirements in days instead of months.” — CISO, Global Financial Services Organization

This experience is not uncommon. According to a 2023 industry survey, 76% of organizations that switched from code-heavy to configuration-based identity platforms reported higher satisfaction with their ability to adapt to changing requirements, and 82% reported lower ongoing operational costs.

Making the Right Choice for Your Organization

When evaluating identity governance platforms, consider these critical questions:

1. Time to Value: How quickly can the solution be implemented to address immediate security and compliance needs?
2. Resource Requirements: What specialized skills are needed for implementation and ongoing operations?
3. Adaptation Capability: How easily can the solution adapt to changing business requirements?
4. Upgrade Path: What is the expected effort and cost for each platform upgrade?
5. Total Cost of Ownership: What are the full lifecycle costs, including implementation, maintenance, and upgrades?

For most organizations, the answers to these questions strongly favor a configuration-based approach like Avatier’s over a coding-intensive platform like ForgeRock.

Conclusion: Configuration Creates Competitive Advantage

In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, identity has become a critical enabler of business agility, security, and compliance. Organizations that choose highly configurable platforms like Avatier’s Identity Management Anywhere gain significant advantages:

• Faster time to value through rapid implementation
• Lower total cost of ownership through reduced dependency on specialized resources
• Greater adaptability to evolving business requirements and compliance mandates
• Sustainable upgrade paths that preserve customizations and configurations
• Improved security posture through faster adoption of new security capabilities

While ForgeRock’s coding approach may appear to offer unlimited flexibility, the long-term costs and constraints of this model often outweigh the benefits. Avatier’s configuration-first architecture delivers the adaptability enterprises need without the burden of custom code maintenance, creating a sustainable foundation for identity governance that evolves with your business.

By choosing configuration over coding, organizations can transform identity from a technical challenge into a business enabler that supports innovation, enhances security, and accelerates digital transformation.

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