Sixty Tampa Bay area companies have been named finalists for the Tampa Bay Business Journal 's 2009 Best Places to Work. (Nine are CEO Council Members.)

Employees of qualifying companies were surveyed by Quantum Market Research to determine the finalists. They are broken down into four categories ranked by size.

• Nearly Big (less than 25 employees) finalists are Alltrust Insurance, Animus Solutions Digital Hands, DSM Technology Consultants, Dunn&Co., Florida Business Interiors, Forizs & Dogali PA, GCA Technology Services, IT Authorities, LS and Company, The Gerard Alexander Consulting Group and USI Insurance Services.

• Big (26 to 50 employees) finalists are Avatel Technologies, Bayside Engineering Inc., Glenn Rasmussen Fogarty & Hooker PA, iDatix, Infinity Business Systems, Kid's Community College, Lewis Birch & Ricardo LLC, Magnetic, Mayer Electric Supply Company, NACM Tampa Inc., National Forensic Science Technology Center, Shared Technologies, Specialized Services Group, and The Murray Company.

• Bigger (51 to 100 employees) finalists are AACSB International, CH2MHILL, Cherry Bekaert & Holland LLP, Coldwell Banker, ConnectWise, Crowe Horwath LLP, CS&L CPAs, Genesis Rehab Services, Grant Thornton, Gregory Sharer & Stuart, Kirkland Russ Murphy & Tapp PA, Lanier Upshaw, Network Liquidators, Phelps Dunbar, Premier Community Healthcare Group Inc., Pulte Homes, RedVector, Residential Finance Group, Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union, Tampa Preparatory School, Universal Engineering Sciences, and Wallace Welch & Willingham Inc.

• Biggest (101 and more employees) finalists are Amscot Financial, Bouchard Insurance Inc., Camden, Geographic Solutions Inc., Intercontinental Tampa, Kforce, Inc., Modern Business Associates, Power Design Inc., Quest Diagnostics, Sunbelt Software, T-Mobile and Trenam Kemker.

GTE Federal Credit Union, Sandler Sales institute, Quantum Market Research and Audio Visual Support Services are sponsors of this year’s Best Places to Work. The event will be held April 23 from 11:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the New Safari Lodge at Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa. To register, call (813) 873-8225.