Within the next three years, millennials will make up 50% of the world’s global workforce. Their affinity with technology clearly sets them apart from the generation before them, with many having a better understanding of key business tools in the IT industry than their senior counterparts.

They’re ability to learn in new ways, whether it be by taking online licenses or through completing online tutorials, helps them to diversify their skill set on a regular basis.

Still, despite their undoubted talents, the group is often ostracised as lazy in the national press, with many businesses struggling to adapt to their idealisms of how a working environment should be.

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Attracting the right talent to any company can be difficult, so a number of companies in the tech industry are having to take chances on rough diamonds as opposed to finished articles.

In these circumstances, a mentor system is the most practical solution. To give you some idea as to how they could have a positive impact on your millennial workforce, here are four detailed key benefits:

It helps them develop their strengths

“A mentor is someone who allows you to see the higher part of yourself when sometimes it becomes hidden to your own view.” Oprah Winfrey.

The ability to self-analyse is one of the hardest skills to develop, whatever industry you work in. In IT, a lot of us spend time problem solving other people’s problems, but when it comes to our own,  people sometimes come unstuck.

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This is where having a mentor figure can really be of benefit. They can help a millennial to understand their own strengths and weaknesses from an outside perspective, a perspective that has the experience to help lead them in the right direction.

Once a millennial can figure out how to maximise their existing strengths, they’ll find that their progression up the career ladder will come much more quickly.

It helps them to express their ideas

Developing a relationship with a mentor can help create a safe place for staff to express their ideas. This can be particularly handy for newcomers or young members of staff that perhaps don’t yet have the confidence to put forward their thoughts in front of a room full of their peers.

With millennials often being the most up to date age groups when it comes to the learning and understanding new technology in the industry, their insight can often be invaluable for businesses.

It expands their network of contacts

Working in IT is never straightforward, with large problems occurring from the simplest of mistypes on a keyboard.

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One way to navigate through these issues is by relying on each other. By having a larger network of contacts to get in touch with regarding any problems, a millennial should be able to rectify any problems that arise during their work more efficiently than before.

It gives them a new perspective

Everyone becomes used to their own way of working, and nine times out of ten, it helps us to deliver the right results.

There are times, however, when people need a fresh perspective that can help us to see things from an entirely different angle. It’s why companies spend millions of pounds having their products tested by focus groups every day

A mentor for a millennial can work in much the same way. By introducing them to new ideas and ways of thinking, they should eventually develop into a better-rounded employee that has the ability to adapt to any changing circumstances.