The term of a management contract is the length of time for which the agreement is to remain in effect. Both a commencement date and a termination date are usually specified in this provision. The commencement date may be either a specific date or it may be as of a certain occurrence, such as the date the hotel officially opens for business. Whatever the certain occurrence may be, the parties to the contract must be careful to define it clearly (e.g., what does "officially open for business" really mean?).