The recruitment industry has earned recognition for its entrepreneurial spirit in a list compiled by a top business magazine.

Management Today selected four recruiters for a list of the top 100 business innovators in the UK, based on personal wealth and any other revealed assets.

Penny Streeter (pictured) was the magazine’s top-placed woman for the second year running. The founder of the Ambition24hours agency is ranked number 13 on the list.

Streeter’s wealth increased last year by an estimated £20m to a total of £50m. She founded Ambition24hours in 1996 and the firm had a turnover of £60m in 2004.

John Smith, managing director of Manchester-based Vital Resources, is the only male recruiter on the list. Smith is 17th highest, and is worth an estimated £70m.

Lorna Moran, chief executive of Northern Recruitment Group, based in Newcastle, is ranked 86 on the list, with an estimated wealth of £16m.

And Janet Crawford, whose family owns the London-based Angel Human Resources, is 99th on the list with an estimated wealth of £7m.