Found this comment in the blogosphere that is right on the money:
"I absolutely hate this phrase. It kills me when people use it. It usually is used as a passive aggresive way to drop the ball in your lap. How about you come out and ask for help? Or state what your real question is. When people use this, they expect you to figure out their problem for them.
I have several Project Managers that use this on a daily basis. I tend to ignore them."