Sentence:  The worst case for productivity is probably when two _perfectly equivalent_ ways exist. <WSD>Buridan's ass</WSD> notoriously starved to death in just such a worst-case situation; groups of programmers may not go quite as far, but are sure to waste lots of time & energy deciding. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  The hypothetical donkey, in context of certainly dying of hunger or thirst by being unable to choose between the two equidistant options.