Become a gardener – leadership in an exponential world 

In an exponential world you have to let go of control. In terms of leadership you need to focus on setting framework conditions:

• Providing purpose, culture, values and legal boundaries
• Holding people fully accountable as intrapreneurs
• Recruiting on (future) meta skills such as passion or potential  

This new leadership role is frequently compared to gardening, as can be read in 6 Ways Great Leadership Is Exactly Like Gardening:

1. Look for the growth
2. Nurture in any way possible
3. Plant seeds
4. Get excited by progress
5. Remove impediments
6. Praise consistently

In the Forbes article Key To Great Leadership? Be A Gardener, Not A Mechanic it reads:

A gardener creates an environment that encourages growth. An environment full of light and nourishment. An environment with sufficient space for stretching and expanding.
Leadership – and gardening – are all about creating positive change.

And, in Gardening Is The Best Metaphor For Leadership it concludes:

The leader may feel she serves her organization versus mastering it, just as the gardener realizes she cannot control the weather and unforeseen challenges.