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ICC profiles

The desired end result, an ICC profile, ensures that devices-dependent information, in this case CMYK or RGB, is converted into information that is device-independent¹ and perception-related² to the human eye.

Jan-Peter Homann, Digital Color Management: Principles and Strategies for the Standardized Print Production (Springer Science & Business Media, 2008), 151.
Jan-Peter Homann, Digital Color Management: Principles and Strategies for the Standardized Print Production (Springer Science & Business Media, 2008), 36.

The Lab colour space

Colour information related to the human eye is represented in the L*a*b colour space (aka CIELAB or CIEL*a*b), in which all perceptible colours are depicted 1. The fact that this colour space is device-independent also means it is lossless. It can be used to convert a colour that from one particular colour system into another colour system. The colour conversion algorithms of industry-standard software such as Adobe Photoshop are based on this ability as well. It is used when colours are depicted in the colour picker.