The presented research reveals the key role of intellectual property as a fundamental indicator of innovation potential of the region. The contribution not only substantiates this relationship, but also builds a visual scheme that demonstrates how intellectual property and innovative activity form a unified system. The proposed method of assessing the innovative potential of the region is distinguished by a comprehensive approach, covering all the key components of intellectual capital: human, organizational and consumer. Three key indicators are used to form a composite index: the percentage of the population involved in research and development, the intensity of patent activity (the number of issued patents for inventions per 1,000 inhabitants), and the level of branding (the number of valid trademark certificates per 1,000 inhabitants). The application of the developed methodology on the example of the regions of the Volga Federal District allowed us to identify and confirm a statistically significant correlation between the number of personnel employed in R&D and the number of patents obtained for inventions, which indicates the high efficiency of human capital in the creation of new intellectual property. These results open new prospects for regional policy aimed at the development of innovations and commercialization of intellectual property.