Qubit
Freelancer delivery decision guide
Use this when a named client input has missed its latest useful date and the original timeline may no longer be honest. The job is not to send another reminder. It is to choose the next working assumption.
Write this sentence before you contact the client: "I need [specific input] from [named owner] by [latest useful date] to complete [specific work] for [client-facing milestone]."
If you cannot name the input, owner, and milestone, you have a communication problem before you have a late-feedback problem. Clarify that first.
Answer in order. Stop as soon as the answer gives you the route. The test does not decide a fee, legal remedy, or contract interpretation. It decides how you should run the project today.
| Question | If yes | If no |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Is the missing thing specific enough for one person to provide or consolidate? | Go to question 2. | Ask for clarification or a named decision owner. Do not chase "feedback" from a group. |
| 2. Is that person responsive, and can the input still arrive before the latest useful date? | Use Chase. | Go to question 3. |
| 3. Can you name a revised milestone that protects the required work after the input arrives? | Use Replan. | Go to question 4. |
| 4. Can meaningful independent work continue without creating likely rework or a false delivery promise? | Do that independent work and set a dated decision check. | Go to question 5. |
| 5. Is there an agreed condition for the project to resume? | Use Pause and state that condition. | Propose the resume condition in writing. Do not quietly keep the original date alive. |
Route 1: Chase
Client note: name the input, latest useful date, and work it preserves.
Internal change: hold the dependent task until the decision check. Do not fill the gap with unapproved work.
Ask to confirm: can the named owner provide the input by the latest useful date?
Route 2: Replan
Client note: state the missed dependency and the revised milestone, not a vague delay.
Internal change: move the dependent task and protect any work that follows it.
Ask to confirm: does the revised milestone work, or does the client need to choose a different priority?
Route 3: Pause
Client note: state the exact input or owner needed before work can resume.
Internal change: remove the assumed delivery slot from your working plan.
Ask to confirm: who will provide the input, and when should you reassess the restart date?
A revised milestone is only useful when it leaves enough time for the work that becomes possible after the client input arrives. Use your planned delivery capacity, not the most optimistic number of hours you could force into a day.
Chase: feedback can still protect the reviewI need your approval on the homepage copy by Wednesday 3 pm to keep Friday's review. The open point is the headline direction in section one. Can you confirm the selected option by then, or should I replan Friday's review?
Replan: the latest useful date has passedThe copy approval we needed for Friday's review did not arrive by Wednesday, so the original review date no longer leaves enough build and QA time. If approval arrives today, I can complete the build review on Tuesday. Please confirm whether Tuesday works or whether we should reduce the review scope.
Pause: no owner or usable input exists yetThe work is waiting on a single approved copy direction, and there is not yet a named person who can make that decision. I am pausing the homepage build rather than make an assumption that creates rework. Once you confirm the decision owner and expected date, I will return with a revised delivery plan.
A freelancer is building a homepage. Final copy approval was due Wednesday at 3 pm. The Friday review needs one day for the build and half a day for QA. On Thursday morning, the client says the leadership team is still discussing the headline.
| Test fact | Answer | Consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Missing input | One approved headline direction | The dependency is specific. |
| Owner | Not one person. A leadership group is still discussing it. | There is no reliable chase target yet. |
| Latest useful date | Wednesday 3 pm has passed. | Friday is no longer protected. |
| Independent work | Some component work can continue, but final layout direction cannot. | Do the safe component work, but replan the review. |
The right route is not "send a firmer reminder." It is Replan: name that Friday is no longer protected, offer Tuesday if approval arrives today, and ask who owns the final decision. If no owner emerges, that becomes a Pause condition.
Do not treat partial feedback as approval. Mark what it resolves, name what is still missing, and decide whether the unresolved part actually blocks the milestone.
Do not ask each person to respond faster. Ask the client to nominate one person to consolidate a decision, then set the latest useful date against that decision.
Keep working only on work that does not lock you into an unapproved direction. Record a decision check so independent work does not quietly turn into a false promise.
This page is not a silence-escalation sequence. Once there is no response across the agreed channels and window, use the agreement and a dedicated unresponsive-client process.
When the original date cannot move, "Replan" is not a complete answer. First calculate the earliest credible full-delivery date. Then choose between a reduced scope by the fixed date, a staged delivery, or a clear statement that the full required work cannot be responsibly delivered on that date. Do not let a fixed external event turn an unverified shortcut into the default plan.
This page is a narrow live-dependency planning aid. For broader prevention systems, communication practices, and client-silence guidance, use these separate resources.