Told to help adviser (4)
I believe the answer is:
aide
'adviser' is the definition.
'told to help' is the wordplay.
'told' indicates a 'sounds like' (homophone) clue.
'to help' becomes 'aid' ('aid' can be a synonym of 'help').
'aid' is a homophone of 'AIDE'.
(Other definitions for aide that I've seen before include "Officer in attendance" , "Military officer acting as assistant" , "Political assistant" , "a help" , "Adviser or assistant" .)