Durham pharmaceutical research company Quintiles Transnational ranked higher on a magazine's list of the "Best Places to Work" for information-technology professionals than two of the Triangle's top tech employers.

Quintiles was No 16 on Computerworld's 2009 IT list, released this morning. That's up from No. 37 last year. Cary-based SAS came in at No. 19 and Raleigh-based Red Hat is No. 95.

The magazine surveys companies and workers, and ranks them based on factors such as benefits and salaries for IT workers, staff turnover rates, training opportunities, and diversity. The top of the list is a diverse bunch: Food maker General Mills is No. 1, followed by biotechnology company Genentech, San Diego Gas & Electric, University of Pennsylvania, and crop and chemical company Monsanto.

The full list is online here.

Quintiles, which recently moved into a new headquarters in Durham, employs more than 1,700 in the Triangle and 23,000 worldwide.