diff --git a/.github/workflows/pipeline.yml b/.github/workflows/pipeline.yml
index 0a9ad6b..bc4f81a 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/pipeline.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/pipeline.yml
@@ -4,8 +4,10 @@ name: CI/CD Pipeline
 on:
   push:
     branches: [ "main" ]
-  pull_request:
+    paths-ignore: 
+  pull_request: 
     branches: [ "main" ]
+    paths-ignore:
   # Schedule pipeline to run monday midnight after sunday ends
   schedule:
     - cron: 0 0 * * MON
@@ -76,12 +78,31 @@ jobs:
     - name: Compile TypeScript into JavaScript
       run: pnpm run build
 
-  # publish to NPM
-  publish-npm:
-    name: Publish to NPM
-    if: github.event_name == 'push' # only run this on push, not PR
+  # detect if there were code changes:
+  detect-code-changes:
+    name: Detect Code Changes
     needs: build
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    outputs:
+      code_changes: ${{ steps.files.outputs.code_changes }}
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - name: Determine Changed Files
+        id: files
+        run: |
+          if git diff --name-only ${{ github.base_ref }}...${{ github.head_ref }} | grep -qvE '(\.md$|\.github/workflows/)'
+          then
+            echo "::set-output name=code_changes::true"
+          else
+            echo "::set-output name=code_changes::false"
+          fi
+
+  # verify new NPM version is updated during push and PR. Skips version number check step if there were code changes
+  verify-npm-version:
+    name: Verify Updated NPM version
+    if: github.event_name == 'push' || github.event_name == 'pull_request' # run version checks only on PR and push
+    needs: detect-code-changes
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v3
         with:
@@ -93,7 +114,8 @@ jobs:
           registry-url: 'https://registry.npmjs.org/'
       - name: Install dependencies
         run: npm install
-      - name: Check if version updated
+      - name: Check if version number is updated
+        if: needs.build-and-test.outputs.code_changes == 'true' # only make check for code changes
         id: check_version
         run: |
           LATEST_TAG=$(git describe --tags --abbrev=0)
@@ -101,20 +123,46 @@ jobs:
           if [ "$LATEST_TAG" = "v$PACKAGE_VERSION" ]; then
             echo "Version in package.json is already published. Exiting..."
             exit 1
-          else
-            echo "::set-output name=version::$PACKAGE_VERSION"
           fi
+
+  # publish to NPM if:
+  #   - It was a push
+  #   - There were code changes
+  publish-npm:
+    name: Publish to NPM
+    if: github.event_name == 'push' && needs.build-and-test.outputs.code_changes == 'true' 
+    needs: verify-npm-version
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0 # Fetches all history for all branches and tags
+      - name: Use Node.js
+        uses: actions/setup-node@v3
+        with:
+          node-version: '20.x'
+          registry-url: 'https://registry.npmjs.org/'
+      - name: Install dependencies
+        run: npm install
+      - name: Check if version updated
+        id: check_version
+        run: |
+          LATEST_TAG=$(git describe --tags --abbrev=0)
+          PACKAGE_VERSION=$(node -p "require('./package.json').version")
+          echo "::set-output name=version::$PACKAGE_VERSION"
       - name: Publish to NPM
         if: steps.check_version.outputs.version
         run: npm publish
         env:
           NODE_AUTH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.NPM_TOKEN }}
 
-  # Create Release
+  # Create Release on GitHub if:
+  #   - It was a push
+  #   - There were code changes
   release:
     name: Create Release
-    if: github.event_name == 'push' # only run this on push, not PR
-    needs: publish-npm
+    if: github.event_name == 'push' && needs.build-and-test.outputs.code_changes == 'true' 
+    needs: verify-npm-version
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code