A helping hand

US: The recession has hurt many, but young workers are finding it especially difficult to deal with. When times were good, these so-called “millennials”, now in their 20s and early 30s, changed jobs frequently and were used to good salaries.

That has changed dramatically — but help is not far away. More and more young people are turning to experienced older colleagues who act as mentors.

“The economy is not where it was a year ago, especially in the last three months, and having a mentor helps you,” says Brian Padworski, 23. Padworski, an audit associate at KPMG , told The Wall Street Journal about his mentor: “He helps me to assess my skills and gives me a better idea of how to get to the next level.”

"The economy is not what it was a year ago, and having a mentor helps you," says Brian Padworski, 23.

Most large US companies have mentoring programmes, but career counsellors point out that life has become more difficult for managers, too. With their own jobs potentially at risk, they may have less patience for the demands of young colleagues.

Those seeking mentors should look for someone whose skills and management style they trust and admire. Mentees can also offer to help their mentors, for example by teaching them how to use new technology like Twitter or showing them how to set up a page on Facebook or LinkedIn. “A short-staffed, smart manager today will take all the help they can get,” says management professor Terri Scandura of the University of Miami .

For more on the importance of mentors, see “Shared experience” in Business Spotlight 2/2009.