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Avatier: Rewriting the Rules of Identity Management

When we founded Avatier, the vision wasn’t just to build another IAM solution—it was to redefine how organizations think about identity.

The problem was obvious: traditional identity and access management (IAM) was clunky, reactive, and riddled with inefficiencies and security vulnerabilities due to the inability to upgrade quickly. It slowed businesses down when it should have been empowering them.

From day one, our mission was to turn identity management from a bottleneck into a business enabler. We saw a future where AI-driven automation could replace manual processes, where security wasn’t just an afterthought but a seamless part of the user experience. Avatier was built to eliminate complexity, to put users in control, and to ensure that companies of any size could scale securely—without friction, without delays, and without compromise.

Today, we continue to push the boundaries, proving that IAM can be smarter, faster, and more intuitive—not just for IT teams, but for every employee who interacts with it.

Avatier isn’t just a product; it’s a movement toward the future of identity.

What We Do

Our identity solutions empower C-Suite Executives to use a digital dashboard to run and manage their business.

Your business runs on back-office applications. Each one is managed separately resulting in added complexity to employees, partners and customers. This ultimately impedes business growth and profits. Avatier Identity Anywhere brings all of these separate applications, cloud services and even employee assets together and allows your organization to manage them as one system.

Avatier is the Identity Management company of the future with innovative solutions for today. Avatier develops a “state of the art” identity management platform enabling organizations to scale faster, innovate quicker, conquer and embrace change, to dominate their competition.

Our Identity solutions are delivered using the latest Docker container technology providing maximum flexibility, scale, and security to our customers.

Avatier is the only company providing solutions that adapt to the needs of the business user delivering a unified framework for business processes across operations.

Industry analysts and customers agree, our identity management and access governance solutions make the world’s largest organizations more secure and productive in the shortest time at the lowest costs.

Our solutions result in the best operational efficiencies in the industry because of our graphical configuration approach versus the laborious ongoing development approach provided by legacy identity management providers.

Leading with AI Powered Identity Security Innovation

Meet the Architects of Identity Innovation

Avatier is led by a team of pioneers who didn’t just join the Identity Access Management market—they helped build its foundation. From commercializing the world’s first delegated administration solution to securing mission-critical systems for the U.S. Department of Defense, our leadership brings a level of technical rigor and operational scale rarely seen in the SaaS space.

Supported by a board of seasoned Silicon Valley inventors and enterprise software architects, our C-suite is committed to a singular mission: replacing manual IT friction with Autonomous Identity. By leveraging our team’s 40+ combined patents, we provide the engineering excellence and AI-driven automation required to protect and empower the modern global enterprise.

Executive Team & Board Members

  • Nelson Cicchitto

    Founder & CEO

    Board member
    Read bio: Nelson Cicchitto

    Nelson Cicchitto is the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Avatier, providing the strategic vision and leadership that has guided the company since its inception in 1995.

    A pioneering force in IT, he is the inventor on 22 patents and is credited with commercializing the world’s first delegated administration solution for Windows NT.

    His deep technical expertise and experience shaping IT infrastructure for Fortune 100 companies continue to drive Avatier’s innovation in identity and access management.

  • Jami Cox

    Chief Customer Officer

    Board member
    Read bio: Jami Cox

    Jami Cox is a growth-focused executive who orchestrates Avatier’s global customer lifecycle, from initial implementation to long-term success and expansion.

    She leverages her proven operational expertise—which includes driving a 400% revenue increase in a prior leadership role—to optimize key customer metrics, including a 20% year-over-year increase in customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores.

    Her data-driven approach ensures the company’s AI-first vision delivers measurable value, maximizing customer lifetime value (LTV) and fueling efficient revenue growth. By aligning the entire post-sale engine, she transforms customer outcomes into a powerful competitive advantage and a scalable foundation for global market expansion.

    Jami holds a degree in Business Administration and Management.

  • Dave Johnson

    Chief Financial Officer

    Read bio: Dave Johnson

    Dave Johnson is a Certified Public Accountant and seasoned financial executive with a career defined by guiding high-growth technology companies through complex financial milestones.

    As the founder and CEO of tempCFO, he served as the Interim CFO for over 100 venture-backed technology companies, where he successfully negotiated complex debt financing and spearheaded multiple mergers and acquisitions.

    His deep expertise in financial modeling, capital raising, and strategic exit planning, honed from his early career at KPMG and Ernst & Young, provides Avatier with an unparalleled strategic advantage in financial governance and capital allocation for its next phase of growth.

    Dave holds an MBA from Columbia University and a Master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

  • Sam Wertheim

    Chief Information Security Officer

    Read bio: Sam Wertheim

    Dr. Sam Wertheim is a cybersecurity leader with over 17 years of experience building and securing mission-critical systems for the U.S. Department of Defense, the Defense Innovation Unit, and Fortune 5 enterprises.

    He brings advanced expertise in AI-enabled threat detection, Zero Trust architecture, and enterprise-ready AI governance frameworks aligned with NIST standards.

    In his role as CISO, Sam is the cornerstone of trust for Avatier and its customers, overseeing the security and compliance of the company’s identity platform. His strategic leadership in embedding security and compliance-by-design into the product lifecycle ensures Avatier delivers the resilient and trustworthy foundation required by global enterprises.

    Sam holds a Doctorate of Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science from Capella University.

  • Jose Picazo

    Director – Venture Partner

    Board member
    Read bio: Jose Picazo

    Jose Picazo is a foundational Silicon Valley entrepreneur and inventor with a proven track record of building and exiting companies in networking and security.

    He is the founder of Picazo Communications, acquired by Intel for ~$150M, where he subsequently served as General Manager of Intel’s Converged Communications Product Division. He is currently the CEO of X One, Inc., a location-driven communications company.

    His career also includes leadership roles at Compaq (via NetWorth), Hughes LAN Systems, Sytek, and IBM, and he is a named inventor on 18 issued U.S. patents.

    This unique blend of deep technical expertise, a history of driving significant financial exits, and operational experience at industry giants provides Avatier with invaluable strategic guidance for scaling its AI-driven identity platform.

    Jose holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology from San Jose State University.

  • Kirk Krappe

    Director – Venture Partner

    Board member
    Read bio: Kirk Krappe

    Kirk Krappe is an accomplished enterprise software pioneer and a proven architect of multi-billion-dollar SaaS outcomes, bringing to the Avatier board a definitive playbook for scaling capital-efficient, category-defining companies.

    As the co-founder and former CEO of Apttus, Krappe defined the Quote-to-Cash category and executed a full-cycle, value-creating journey highly relevant to growth investors. He scaled the company to a dominant market position with over 350 global enterprise customers, secured $186M in venture funding, and ultimately steered its successful exit in a $2 billion acquisition by Thoma Bravo. This experience provides Avatier with direct, actionable insight into managing hyper-growth, optimizing for a premium valuation event, and navigating strategic partnerships with private equity.

    His foundational operating experience was built at the forefront of enterprise SaaS with pioneering applications at Corio (a pioneering ASP/cloud precursor) and in key executive roles at Oracle and Siebel Systems. This deep operational DNA in building and scaling complex B2B software platforms ensures board-level guidance that is both strategically acute and executionally precise.

    Krappe’s recognition as an EY Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist underscores his leadership in driving exceptional company growth and culture.

    Kirk holds an MBA from INSEAD and a degree in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering from the University of London.

How Avatier Leadership Redefines Identity Security

Avatier’s leadership is defined by a 25-year mandate of Engineering Excellence, originating with the world’s first delegated administration solution. While legacy providers are now racing to retro-fit AI into aging frameworks, we are leveraging our foundation of 40+ combined patents to lead the global transition to Autonomous Identity. By unifying enterprise workflows with an AI Digital Workforce, we solve high-stakes security challenges with the transparency, accountability, and measurable value required by the Fortune 100.

Avatier Timeline & History

Avatier Corporation, the inventor of the world’s first patented Identity Access IT Store with automatic workflow, redefined the traditional Identity and Access Governance Risk Management software market. Back in 2010, we created and patented the only access management integrated ITIL-based business services catalog by fusing it with the world’s most operationally efficient identity management and access governance solution.

  1. 1995

    • MDD Inc. is founded in San Ramon, California
    • Master Design & Development, Inc (MDD) is formed as a custom development firm

  2. 1997

    • Avatier Corporation is founded by Nelson Cicchitto.
    • Creates the world's first delegated administration solution for Microsoft Windows NT platform.

  3. 2001

    • Releases Password Management.NET, the first Microsoft .NET-based password reset product
    • Delivers ROI Calculator for Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR)

  4. 2007

    • Launches User Provisioning / Life Cycle Solution Lifecycle Management

  5. 2008

    • Launches the world’s first patented Identity Access IT Store with automatic workflow.

  6. 2010

    • Develops and patents the only access management integrated ITIL-based business services catalog.

  7. 2012

    • Automates identity and access governance reporting with Access Governance

  8. 2014

    • Launches Single Sign-On
    • SaaS Cost Savings Analysis

  9. 2015

    • Avatier HQ moves to Pleasanton, California

  10. 2016

    • Avatier Adds Biometric MFA to Password Management

  11. 2018

    • Introduces Identity Anywhere, the world’s first Docker container cloud-independent identity management platform.

  12. 2019

    • Avatier offers hosted or non-hosted solution on-premise or in the cloud.
    • Introduces Apollo Virtual Customer Assistant for Identity Governance & Administration (IGA Automate any IT task)

  13. 2020

    • Develops a unified workflow & automation that runs natively in the leading apps and platforms.

  14. 2021

    • Creates a collaborative, self-service approach to enterprise access with a new mobile app platform.
    • Introduces Avatier Captcha with integrated payment and billing.

  15. 2022

    • Avatier Celebrates 25 Years as Innovator in Identity Management and Access Governance
    • For over two decades, Avatier continues to demonstrate leadership in delivering enterprise Identity and Access Management (IAM) solutions

  16. Now

    • Avatier Unveils Patent-Pending Enterprise Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR) to Prevent Catastrophic Data Breaches

Corporate Facts

  • Privately held C corporation, founded in 1997 by Nelson Cicchitto.
  • Headquarters in Pleasanton, CA.
  • Products sold through direct sales and indirect channels including resellers and system integrators.
  • Avatier has partnered with dozens of industry leaders.

Avatier Corporate HQ

4733 Chabot Drive – Suite 201Pleasanton, CA 94588(800) 609-8610 Toll Free(925) 217-5170 Direct

Industry Partnership

Avatier’s partners bring important capabilities that are critical to delivering complete solutions to our customers. Customer service and satisfaction are at the core of the Avatier philosophy, and our partner community is critical in achieving of our goals.

See Partners

Build Your Identity Security Foundation Today

Put identity security at the core of your AI-powered business. Give your teams the freedom to innovate boldly, backed by Avatier’s patented identity security foundation. By replacing manual friction with autonomous access, we stop threats before they happen—transforming identity from a compliance hurdle into a powerful, self-securing engine for global growth.

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