The paper discusses how the increasing availability of large amount of digital data in ATM addresses the need for an approach that combines operational expertise, data analysis skills and information design. Big data pose both opportunities and challenges: by describing the big picture, they can provide fruitful insights into the ATM system that would be otherwise impossible to get, but they may as well remain opaque and merely overwhelming if a proper sense-making process is not put in place. Other industries have been taking advantage of big data for a long time with results that are hardly questionable. ATM is still exploring the methods and tools for the best exploitation of large data sets; the case of ASMT (Automatic Safety Monitoring Tool) well exemplifies the efforts in progress. The results from three previous studies based on ASMT are discussed in order to highlight the gap that exists when trying to transform ASMTinformed analysis into operationally relevant recommendations.\r\nA tentative solution proposed in the conclusive section focuses on the role of information design.\r\n