Creative departments within advertising agencies have long been a Boys Club with women making up about 25% of the staffs within creative departments. Women are also underrepresented in the creative awards given such as One Show Pencils and Cannes Lions among others as well as on the judging panels who bestow these awards. Yet women make 80%-85% of all consumption decisions. There seems an obvious disconnect. This special topics session included four top creative directors -- two women and two men -- from Minneapolis advertising agencies whose work encompassed a broad range of national accounts including Burger King, BMW Mini, Snickers, 3M, American Express and ESPN. Panelists began by telling their stories of how they got their first advertising job and those who mentored them, then the conversation segued to empathy as a way of creating better advertising, issues within creative departments and advertising in general.