Samantha Bates, CCM-AP, is a Global Legal Operations and Contracts Professional Leader at W. L. Gore & Associates, where contributions include leadership in global contract operations and commercial activities since September 2017. Prior to their role at Gore, Samantha served as a Contracts/Commercial Manager at Meggitt, overseeing a $20 million facility's contracts, and held positions at Smiths Detection as Contracts Manager and Bids & Proposal Manager, managing customer procurements and ensuring contract compliance. Earlier experience includes roles at TESSCO, Klinge Corporation, and Wittenbach Business Systems, where responsibilities focused on contract administration, sales support, and customer service. Samantha earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Acquisition and Contract Management from Strayer University and an Associate's degree in Business Management from Ashworth College.