In the assessment of handprint potential, the focus is on identifying the positive environmental impacts, such as reductions in carbon footprints, that a solution could enable for its users in the future. In other words, the assessment does not concern impacts that have already been realised, but rather an estimate of how much emissions or other harmful environmental impacts could be reduced if the solution were implemented.

The definition of handprint potential mainly follows the general principles of handprint assessment, but it differs from the assessment of a realised handprint particularly with respect to the definition of the baseline (reference solution). Handprint potential is assessed at a stage where the solution has not yet been deployed. As a result, there is often no specific user or clearly defined operating environment to which the impact assessment could be directly linked. For this reason, the baseline cannot be based on an individualised starting situation. Instead, it is defined using typical, averaged, or statistical operating models that describe how the same need or function would most likely be fulfilled without the solution under consideration.

This type of baseline approach makes it possible to assess handprint potential at an early stage, prior to deployment and precise targeting of the solution. At the same time, it allows the potential system-level environmental benefits of the solution to be identified, even when detailed information on future users or specific use conditions is not yet available. Handprint potential is therefore used primarily in strategic planning and decision support, where comparable assessments of the potential system-wide impacts of different solutions are needed.