For nearly two decades, Inga Petri has been helping organizations answer some of their most important questions: Where are we today? Where do we want to go? And how do we get there?
What’s the Strategic Moves story?
Inga founded Strategic Moves in 2007 to support businesses, charities, non-profits, governments, and cultural organizations across Canada with developing strategies that create lasting impact. While much of her work focuses on the arts and culture sector, her approach applies to any organization facing growth, change, or uncertainty.
Inga’s path into strategy began in marketing. Early in her career, she worked at advertising agencies in Ottawa, developing brand strategies for clients. Over time, she discovered that many organizational challenges extended far beyond marketing.
“Brand strategy often led us into conversations about customer service, internal communications, governance, and operations,” she explains. “I became interested in taking a broader view of organizations rather than focusing solely on branding.”
What exactly is Strategy?
Inga defines strategy as a practical bridge between the present and the future.
“Good strategy is grounded in where you are today and the aspiration for where you want to go,” she says. “Strategy is the pathway that helps you get there.”
Unlike approaches focused primarily on beating competitors, Inga often takes a more collaborative “Rising tide floats all boats” view.
A typical strategic planning engagement begins with extensive research and analysis. Internally, that means examining factors such as organizational performance, staff satisfaction, succession planning, governance, and definitions of success. Externally, it involves understanding market conditions, industry trends, stakeholder needs, competitor analysis, and ecosystem mapping to identify organizations that do similar things but could be mutually supportive. This is done using the PESTEL framework (examining Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, and Legal factors that may affect an organization’s future). Emerging technologies, new regulations, changing consumer expectations, and evolving funding environments all play a role.
“About half of our work typically goes into research and evaluation,” she says. “The other half is focused on defining a vision and building a roadmap to achieve it.”
One of her longest-standing client relationships illustrates the value of that approach. Over the past decade, Strategic Moves has worked extensively with the Capitol Theatre in Moncton, New Brunswick, supporting everything from strategic planning and digital transformation to revenue growth, marketing strategy, audience development, and municipal funding research. During that time, the organization has more than tripled its operating budget.
For Inga, however, the most rewarding clients aren’t necessarily the largest.
“My favourite organizations are the ones that can translate strategy into action,” she says. “The best strategy in the world doesn’t matter if it never gets implemented. The organizations that succeed are able to maintain a long-term perspective, even when they’re dealing with day-to-day operational pressures.”
What brought you to Whitehorse?
Her own journey to the Yukon began unexpectedly. After visiting for work and conferences, Inga returned for a two-month vacation in 2015. What started as an extended stay quickly became something more.
“I got stuck here because of the weather,” she laughs. “I ended up renting a house from someone I met during that trip and completely fell in love with the place.”
For several years she split her time between Ottawa and Whitehorse before eventually making the Yukon her permanent home.
Since then, she has become deeply involved in the territory’s innovation ecosystem. In 2021, Inga served as Chair of Yukon’s Innovation Commission, helping provide advice to the Minister responsible for developing the territory’s innovation strategy.
Why did you join Tech Yukon, how has our community served you?
Her interest in innovation also led her to Tech Yukon, where she now serves as a board member.
“A lot of my work involves digital strategy, particularly in arts and culture, which has traditionally been slower to adopt new technologies,” she says. “I joined because I understand how important digital adoption is, and I wanted to contribute to that conversation.”
Through Tech Yukon, she has found opportunities to stay informed about emerging topics such as cybersecurity, intellectual property, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing – areas that increasingly affect organizations across every sector.
“Tech Yukon helps make these topics accessible,” she says. “It’s been meaningful to learn from experts and to help bring that knowledge into the community.”
Whether she’s advising national arts organizations, supporting local businesses, or helping shape innovation policy, Inga remains focused on the same goal: helping organizations build a clear vision for the future and the confidence to pursue it. Strategy isn’t just about planning, it’s about creating the conditions for long-term success.