A young entrepreneur, who counts the likes of Nike and Tottenham Hotspur among his clients, has been named on a list of the world's top five IT pioneers.

Raj Patel, who started his business while still at university, is the first from the UK to be named as one the world's top five "Channel Changers" by the global body CompTIA, which counts Microsoft and IBM among its members.

The 28-year-old was recognised for founding Vanti, a business which designs and creates digital systems, and also counts the Library of Birmingham and United Business Media among its clients.

The Channel Changers scheme seeks to recognise entrepreneurs, businesses and innovators who are changing the face of IT.

Mr Patel founded his company, now based at the Birmingham Innovation Campus at Faraday Wharf, as a second-year University of Birmingham student and has transformed it into a global business delivering AV and IT solutions into corporate and public sector markets.

Mr Patel said he was interested in electronics from an early age, something that was encouraged by his grandfather.

"My mother tells me I have been obsessed by wires and electronics since the age of six," he said. "I learnt most of what I know from my grandfather, who was an electronics engineer, and he gave me my first soldering iron when I was 12."

Mr Patel said Vanti was first founded as Response Technical Solutions in his time off from university studies.

"Once I finished university I focused exclusively on education and since then I have successfully diversified the business into small business and then corporate fit-out," he added.

Vanti aims to offer cost-cutting services using technology and has grown to employ 14 people and achieve a turnover of £1.6 million.

Previous projects range from boardrooms for investment banks with interfaces so simple they can be used without training and a theatre for a specialist performing arts school where Vanti was the only company to read the syllabus to understand how students would use the space.

Mr Patel said the firm was currently working on fitting out a new London headquarters for a global media, events and marketing company with audio-visual technology.

The tie-up with Premier League football club Tottenham Hotspur saw the firm fit out new offices and installing Microsoft Lync so the club would be able to communicate via instant message, audio and video calls across all its sites and with remote workers and partners.

"I understand how technology can enrich people's lives or increase productivity, how to make it simple and effective to use, as well as how to make money out of it," Mr Patel said.

He added: "I don't think there's any secret as such. I think the key is not being afraid to make mistakes, not being afraid to go against the grain when making key decisions and lots of hard work and determination."

Further growth is on the agenda but Mr Patel says he plans to stay in Birmingham and has even turned down lucrative offers to buy the business.

"We're still constantly developing Vanti and have a strategy established to continue to grow considerably over the course of the next three years," he said.

"We want to be right at the heart of the convergence taking place between audio-visual, IT, telecoms and infrastructure technologies and have a keen interest in the developments in the emerging field of smart buildings.

"In terms of our journey, we think we have a long road ahead of us and want to ensure we continue to grow the business in a way that means we will never compromise our commitment to the highest quality standards.

"We're committed to our base in Birmingham and believe we can nurture the talent we need here to continue to have our work recognised at an international level."