Pet peeve: nothing to do b/c you're waiting for approval

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This is a pattern at my workplace that I've noticed in the past year or so that's become very annoying and counterproductive.

I've been assigned to a project and there are several tracks that it could. Let's call these tracks:

Option 1
Option 2
Option 3

And my supervisor tells me to reach out to the manager in a different department about which option to take. That manager can never make up his mind and keeps making excuses for not making a decision.

So I decide to pick Option 1 and start working on it but my manager catches me and says not to build anything until I get approval from this other manager. So I reach out to that manager again and he still doesn't make a decision.

Meanwhile days and even weeks pass by and I come to work with little /no actual work to do and my manager is unhappy that I'm not accomplishing much and doesn't buy the explanation that the other manager is being wishy washy about picking an Option.

Sad thing is, I could have finished Options 1-3 in that time if I had just worked on them all instead of sitting idle at work. And these don't take much resources to build besides my time (since they're all computer programs i could write, not like building a house or something that consumes real resources.)

When that happens to me, I send an email to the person making the decision, stating that I am still waiting for their approval, and I "cc" my own supervisor plus 2 or 3 others who would likely be affected.  There is usually a same-day decision in response.

Sounds like a plan!

What about the more difficult case where you're asked to work with someone on a project but that person refuses to cooperate with you, like they give some excuses for not helping you or even outright ignores you?However, working alone on this project is not an option either since they're like a manager or something and have access to something that is required to get the work done. But when you complain to your manager, they blame you 100%. Unfortunately, this person you're supposed to work with is even more senior than your supervisor and doesn't listen to him when asked to work with you by your supervisor.

Tricky issue because some egos may be crushed and you don't want to be the one cited for incompetence or laziness.

One approach is work all three options, then once completed do a trade-off analysis on all three options and then make your best recommendation. At this point, you supervisor will be on the spot to select one of the options. If he selects an option that you did not recommend, and it goes south then he will bear the brunt of blame for the decision because he selected an approach at variance with your documented ideal approach that you recommended. I think generally your supervisor will take your approach and then take credit for its success.