If you have a GitHub Action workflow that you want to run on scheduled, then you may realize that GitHub Action cron is unreliable and unstable. Reasons are:

  • GitHub uses a best-effort scheduler — there’s no guarantee that the job starts exactly at the scheduled time.
  • Jobs may be delayed if:
    • The GitHub Actions runner is under high load
    • The repo is on a free plan or not prioritized in the queue
  • It can even skip scheduled runs if:
    • There hasn’t been a recent push to the default branch
    • The repository is inactive (no events or pushes in >60 days)
    • There’s a workflow configuration error (e.g., invalid cron, permissions)

Therefore, instead of relying on GitHub Action cron, GCP Cloud Function and Scheduler Job might be your next best friend

1. Setup your basic GitHub Action workflow

  • Let create a simple workflow to generate a Standup Issue on GitHub, save it under .github/workflows/daily-standup.yml within repository /standup for example
name: Daily Standup Issue

on:
  workflow_dispatch:  # Only runs when triggered manually or via API

jobs:
  create-standup:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest

    steps:
      - name: Get Today
        id: date
        run: |
          echo "today=$(date +'%Y/%m/%d')" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT

      - name: Create Standup Issue
        id: create_issue
        uses: actions-ecosystem/action-create-issue@v1
        with:
          github_token: $
          title: "Daily Standup - $"
          body: |
            ## Standup Notes - $

            Please reply with a comment below with this format:

            **YESTERDAY**: What did you work on yesterday?
            **TODAY**: What will you work on today?
            **BLOCKERS**: Any blockers?
          labels: standup # Need to create a label `standup` or you can remove this
          assignees: $ # Assign it to yourself because why not
  • Publish it by committing to GitHub

2. Generate GitHub Personal Access Token (PAT)

To get GitHub Personal Access Token (PAT) so you can trigger workflows or interact with the GitHub API, follow these steps:

  • Go to Token Settings
  • Choose Token Scopes (Permissions)
    • Minimum required scopes: repo + workflow
  • Set Expiration and Description
  • Generate and Save the Token
    • It may look like ghp_XXXXXXX....

3. Create a Cloud Function on GCP

  • You can create a new Google Cloud Function, and set it up like this:
cloud-function/
├── index.js
├── package.json

index.js

const fetch = require('node-fetch');

exports.triggerWorkflow = async (req, res) => {
  const GITHUB_TOKEN = process.env.GITHUB_TOKEN;
  const OWNER = 'your-username-or-org';
  const REPO = 'standup';
  const WORKFLOW_FILE = 'daily-standup.yml';
  const REF = 'main'; // or 'master', check it to make sure

  const url = `https://api.github.com/repos/${OWNER}/${REPO}/actions/workflows/${WORKFLOW_FILE}/dispatches`;

  const response = await fetch(url, {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${GITHUB_TOKEN}`,
      'Accept': 'application/vnd.github+json',
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({ ref: REF })
  });

  if (response.status === 204) {
    res.status(200).send('GitHub Action triggered successfully.');
  } else {
    const error = await response.text();
    res.status(500).send(`Failed to trigger GitHub Action:\n${error}`);
  }
};

package.json
{
  "name": "trigger-github-action",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "main": "index.js",
  "dependencies": {
    "node-fetch": "^2.6.7"
  }
}
  • Then you need to add the variable for GITHUB_TOKEN
    • Go to Google Cloud Console → Cloud Functions
      • Click on your Function → Edit & deploy new revision
      • Scroll to “Variables & Secrets” → Environment variables
    • Add: GITHUB_TOKEN ghp_XXXXXXX....
    • Your code can now access process.env.GITHUB_TOKEN
  • Re-deploy your Function and grab the URL to the Function, it may look like this https://{name}-69830429786.{region}.run.app

4. Create a Scheduler Job

Go to Google Cloud Scheduler and Enable it (if you didn’t already)

Create a new Job and fill in with:

  • Name
  • Frequency: * * * * * (cron format), you can always check it here
  • Timezone: your expected timezone
  • Target: HTTP
  • URL: Paste the Cloud Function trigger URL from previous step
  • HTTP method: POST
  • Body: {} or empty
  • Header: Content-Type: application/json Save your Job and it’s Done

5. Extra section: Cost!

So, is it free?

  • Cloud Function: for standup you just need ~22 calls per month, so it’s $0 (free tier)
  • Cloud Scheduler: you just need 1 job, so it’s $0 (free tier, you have 3 jobs for free)

Enjoy the automatic reliable Workflow on GitHub Action!