Method and system for implementing a dead man dependency technique in a cluster comprising a plurality of interconnected nodes, one of the nodes comprising a cluster resource manager (CRM), and one of the nodes comprising a policy engine (PE), the PE maintaining at least one dependency associated with a first resource executing on one of the nodes. In an embodiment, the method comprises, responsive to a status change of an attribute associated with the first resource, the PE receiving from the CRM an indication of the status change and information regarding a configuration of the cluster; responsive to receipt of the status change indication and the configuration information, identifying by the PE a manner of terminating and migrating the first resource to another one of the nodes; and providing by the PE to the CRM an instruction sequence for causing the identified manner of terminating and migrating the first resource.