Hi, I'm Emily — mom, maker, problem-solver, and your Extra Player for projects and chaos. 🎮

I didn't set out to become a one-person creative and technical powerhouse. It happened naturally over 15+ years of supporting executives, building brands, managing operations, and solving problems that didn't fit neatly into one job description.

Somewhere along the way I realized I was equally at home in a Salesforce dashboard, a WordPress backend, a Canva design file, and a chaotic executive inbox — often all in the same afternoon.

So I stopped trying to pick a lane.

About Me

Three women forming a human pyramid on a lawn in front of a brick house, with shrubs and a window in the background.

My Story

I started my career as a marketing assistant at a biotech company in Baltimore — eager, organized, and quietly certain I was meant to do more than one thing. Turns out I was right. Over fourteen years I climbed through marketing, operations, Salesforce administration, executive support, and eventually graphic design — leading brand refreshes across 50+ global locations and helping launch a Series A financing round with a tagline I still love:

“Manufacturing Miracles”

Paragon Bio Services logo with the slogan 'Manufacturing Miracles' and a stylized background

In 2024 a corporate restructuring ended that chapter. As anyone would, I explored my options — but somewhere in the middle of that process I started building Ready Player Mom LLC to see what I could actually do for myself. Because I kept thinking about all the leaders I'd worked with over the years — the ones drowning in chaos, juggling too many vendors, wishing they had one person who just got it all. Named after a social media handle I'd carried for years. Formalized in 2025. Built for exactly those people.

I never fit neatly into one box. Every time I mastered one skill my employers handed me another — and I said yes every time. Not because I had to. Because I genuinely loved all of it. The strategy AND the design. The systems AND the creativity. The spreadsheets AND the brand campaigns. While everyone around me was picking a lane I was quietly collecting them — building a range that most people said wasn't possible in one person.

It took me fourteen years to realize that wasn't a liability. It was exactly what businesses need.

Tattoo on forearm with the word "Allory" in cursive, incorporating a syringe with the words "Alex Piem" on it, surrounded by decorative swirls.
A woman with black hair, and glasses lying on a tattoo table, with a man sitting next to her, partially visible, tattooing her wearing gray jeans and a black shirt.

Outside of work I'm a mom to two incredible girls — the ALE and PIE in AlePie Designs, named after them before I fully knew why. 💙 Somewhere in 2017 I got a tattoo. Allons-y. Let's go. I didn't know then how much I'd need it. We live in a 1970s fixer-upper in Glen Arm, MD that we are slowly but determinedly making our forever home. I share it with my husband Ian, an ex-Marine and AV technician who shows up fully every single time, and an assortment of animals including a dog named after a Portal AI and two cats who were definitely supposed to be fosters.

A small outdoor wedding ceremony with a couple standing on a large rock and a woman officiating, all surrounded by greenery. The couple is dressed in formal attire, and the officiant is wearing a black dress with a rainbow pride sash, short black sandals, and reading from a paper.
Four people, including a woman, a young girl, a teenage girl, and a teenage boy, standing outdoors with green trees in the background. The young girl and teenage girl are wearing colorful, striped dresses and holding sunflower bouquets, and the woman and teenage boy are casually dressed. The young girl is wearing a floral crown.

The same stubbornness that makes me rebuild a house room by room is what I bring to every client project. The same determination that rebuilt my life is what makes me show up fully — every time.

This season of life has held profound grief — four grandparents, beloved pets, chapters that closed too soon. It has also held profound joy. New love. A home we chose. Work that finally feels like mine. Two little entrepreneurs who want to sell simmer pots at makers markets and apparently won't take no for an answer.

When you've navigated real chaos — personally and professionally — you get very good at helping others navigate theirs. You stop being rattled by hard problems. You start being the person others call when everything is falling apart.

A gray and black dog lying on a wooden surface indoors, resting its head and one ear on the table, with a blurred background of a window and furniture.

That's what I built Ready Player Mom LLC to be.

Most people hire a designer OR an ops person OR a developer. I'm the one you call when you need all three and don't have time to manage three different people. Whatever your project. Whatever your deadline. Whatever your quest — I'm your extra player.

One Hero. Every Quest.

Let’s Connect

You made it to the end of my story — which probably means you're exactly the kind of person I love working with.

Whether you need a creative partner, a technical expert, an operational right hand, a Salesforce whisperer, a WordPress wizard, or someone patient enough to teach your dad how to use his new iPhone — I'm your Extra Player.

I work with businesses, nonprofits, and individuals who are tired of juggling too many people to get one thing done. Who need someone who just gets it — all of it — and shows up ready to go.

Ready to level up? Let's talk about how we can work together — remotely, fractionally, or right here in Baltimore County.

Allons-y!

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