Nintendo achieves recognition from BusinessWeek, which ranks the company as its top operation for 2009. According to BusinessWeek, to sit with the best, companies should boast "commitment to innovation, diversified portfolios, aggressive expansion, strong leadership, and a clear vision for the future."

BusinessWeek's top 40 was compiled with the help of management consulting firm A.T. Kearney.  They graded 2,500 publicly traded firms worldwide with revenues of at least $10 billion USD during 2008. Eligible companies were ranked based on sales growth and value creation ("the rise of market capitalization after subtracting any increase in capital") over the past five years.

Though Nintendo didn't necessarily boast the single highest compound annual growth rate out of the top 40 in either value creation or sales, the company did manage to score well enough in both figures to ultimately come out on top. Indeed, despite facing some sobering results for the first quarter of its latest financial year, Nintendo raked in the dough compared to its console competitors: $2.66 billion USD in revenue, and $442 million USD in profit.

Recognizing the Wii as a "a true disrupter of the entertainment industry", BusinessWeek praised Nintendo's "visionary leadership and a three-tiered product development process that brings together top management, development staff, and marketing and administrative teams."

Japanese electronics maker Nintendo claims the No. 1 spot this year. Its sales have risen 36% annually over the past five years, while its value growth averaged 38%. Despite the hard times of the past year, Nintendo's continued emphasis on innovation has helped the company develop must-haves such as the DS handheld game machine and the Wii console, which outsold rival offerings from Sony and Microsoft.

Nintendo's strategy is emblematic of the tech companies on the list. Like Nintendo, American technology giants Google (No. 2), Apple (No. 3), and Amazon.com (No. 17) have continued to invest heavily in innovation, commanding large market share with new products even as consumer spending and confidence have declined sharply.

Here's a sample of the full list, available here:

The World's Best Companies 2009 Top 10

1. Nintendo
2. Google
3. Apple
4. Doosan Heavy Industries
5. Hyundai Heavy Industries
6. GDF Suez
7. MTN
8. Monsanto
9. Inditex
10. BHP Billiton

Despite its top billing with BusinessWeek, earlier this year the magazine ranked Nintendo 39th in their roundup of the top 100 global brands, and the fifth most innovative company of 2009.  Microsoft's software business allowed the company to land just ahead of Nintendo at fourth place in BusinessWeek's list of top innovators.