Meg Pounds Carly

Ever since Fortune launched its annual "Most Powerful Women in Business" list six years ago, it has been Hewlett-Packard's (NYSE:HPQ) Carly Fiorina at the top. Well, that streak is over and it's about time.

It's not that Fiorina doesn't have a great story to tell. She blasted that glass ceiling to bits. While the powerful women at the helm of companies such as Fidelity, Playboy (NYSE:PLA), and Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) inherited their positions after their fathers handed them the keys, Fiorina fought her way to the top without the birthright.

However, the past few years haven't been kind to Fiorina. Her costly decision to acquire Compaq, over the objection of many, has yet to pay off.

So that's why it's refreshing to see a new name on top of this year's list -- eBay's (NASDAQ:EBAY) more than worthy Meg Whitman.

She came to eBay after toiling away in Disney's (NYSE:DIS) consumer products division and has been practically flawless in steering the world's leading auctioneer. I mean, seriously. Take a second and jot down all of the mistakes that eBay has made under Whitman's watch.

Stumped? Me too. Her excellent performance has even landed her on the short list of potential replacements for Disney's Michael Eisner, though one has to wonder what -- beyond the appetizing notion of returning to Disney as the prodigal daughter -- would pry her away from the healthy growth of eBay.

So a hearty round of congratulations goes out to Whitman. Her reign on top may last for some time. You can bid on it.

Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz is surprised to see that the leaders of Lifeway and Playboy didn't make the cut for Fortune's list of 50 powerful women. He owns shares in Disney.