Former Saudi Aramco President and CEO Abdallah S. Jum'ah, Monitor Group consultant Noura Al-Turki and 2004 Toastmasters World Champion Randy Harvey were the center of attraction on the first day of the two-day conference.

"We have had a phenomenal response this year," said Hassan Abdul Majeed, chairman of the registration committee. "I have been part of the organizing committee for the last three years and have never seen this kind of response. It is tremendous."

A training and career development supervisor at Saudi Aramco Total Refining and Petrochemical Co. (SATORP), Hassan said 90 percent of those who took part in Thursday's deliberations were Saudis. "Most of them are from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, King Faisal University, Jubail Industrial College and Alkhobar's Al-Salam School," he said. "A large number of them are women."

Toastmasters from all over the Kingdom are taking part in the annual event. "We have Toastmasters from Jeddah, Riyadh, Abha, Jubail, to name just a few cities and even Bahrain," he said.

Ahmed Abdullah Al-Kuwaihes and Adnan Al-Zahrani came from Tanajib, a city near Al-Khafji, about 250 km from Alkhobar. Both work for Saudi Aramco's Tanajib Marine Operations Division. "We are passionate about Toastmasters and we came in just so we could attend this conference and to listen to the honorable speakers," they said.

So passionate are the two about Toastmasters that they have written a book in Arabic that explains the importance of Toastmasters and why should one join it. "We want Saudis to join this organization in a big way. It will only help them in learning the ways and means of better communication," said Al-Kuwaihes and Al-Zahrani. "Effective communication is an essential tool for us to go ahead in life. It can help us advance our careers in an enriching way," they said.

Al-Kuwaihes and Al-Zahrani said other companies in the Kingdom should follow Saudi Aramco's example in promoting Toastmasters. "Saudi Aramco is the leader. It has always encouraged us to excel and to better ourselves in all fields, especially in the world of communication," they said.

There were many Saudis who turned up at the event with all their family members. One of them was Ibrahim Al-Hajji from Al-Ahsa. He brought in his wife and children and was delighted with speech contests in Arabic. "I want to thank Division M for introducing Arabic language contests for the first time. I understand English but my wife has a little difficulty. So she enjoyed the contests and workshops in Arabic. Some of the speakers were excellent, especially Nora Faisal Al-Shabaan," said Al-Hajji who works as a section head at Saudi Electricity Co. Al-Shabaan conducted a workshop on self-improvement strategies in Arabic.

Filipino, Indian and Pakistani Toastmasters were present in substantial numbers but they were simply outnumbered by the Saudi attendees.

In what many considered the rollicking keynote of the day, Randy Harvey spoke about the essential elements of speaking. He explained why it was important for speakers to make an eye contact with their audience. "You have to look into the eye of the beast," he said. "A good introduction is prerequisite for a good speech," he said. "The first 60 words are the most important. If you are not able to command the attention of the audience in those 60 words then you are doomed," he said. He advised Toastmasters to avoid using conjunctions and to instead prefer what he termed as "the power of pause."

Toastmasters International Division M is headed by Ali T. Al-Qahtani and exclusively comprises Saudi Aramco employees. The division, with nearly 600 members, is rated as one of the most important groups in the world of Toastmasters. Its annual conference is always a big affair.

Al-Qahtani said the idea to introduce Arabic contests along with English has paid off very well. "The turnout speaks for the success of the event. The idea was to draw as many participants as possible from the local community and Alhamdulillah we did," he said during the opening ceremony.

On Friday, Harvey will speak on communication across generations. Zamil Group Holding Co. Managing Director Khalid Al-Zamil will speak about family business governance.

Toastmasters International is a nonprofit organization that promotes communication and leadership. It was Saudi Aramco that helped form the first Toastmasters club nearly 30 years ago. There are five divisions with three in the Eastern Province and one each in Riyadh and Jeddah.