Industry is a key player in the transition to a sustainable society and academia can support this transition by conducting relevant research and transferring knowledge to practice. This paper complements operations management methods by presenting a co-creative approach on two levels; a model on a conceptual level and the operationalisation of this model when supporting a sustainable operations change project. By building on trust and relationships, finding common problems and make funding and resources available, the paper presents how gaps of knowledge can be overcome in the collaborative research work between academia and practice.