They treat every deadline as an ArtificialDeadline.

If you ask them to decide on X versus Y by a particular date, with X being the default, the deadline will go flying past. Then when you are 90% finished doing X they will demand Y, and somehow they will succeed in making you look like a bozo for having done X.

If a ship sails without them, they complain that it should have waited. If it did wait, then they win. By being unreasonable, they control reality.

How I envy them.

-- DavidFlater

This is an instance of LeastFlexibleProtocolWins. -- EricHodges

''So take back control. Email the person who needs to make the decision the day before the deadline, and copy your boss and his boss. In the best case, you might prod the dolt into making the required decision. In the worst case, when the deadline flies by, and the loser points the finger at you, you've got a finger to point back. It's a crappy way to do business, but I've learned that it's sometimes necessary.'' -- MikeSmith

I use a simple rule.  The person who is going to do the work makes the decision.  Other people can advise or recommend, but the person who is responsible for the  success or failure of the task must be given the authority to decide how to do it.  In the scenario above, if no advice on using X or Y was provided by the decision date, then the implementer makes a decision using the best information available to him.  After the decision is made, everyone pitches in 100% to make the decided upon approach succeed.  No second guessing.  The responsibility for enforcing the rules is the project manager on a team or the lowest level manager over all involved parties if more than one team is involved.  A manager should not leave his people open to political games and after the fact criticism.

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See also: DouglasAdamsOnDeadlines, JustStopCaring