Polycrystalline iron based shape memory alloys typically suffer from rapid degradation upon cyclic loading. In particular, microstructural properties like the misorientations of the grains lead to functional and structural fatigue. To overcome these challenges, especially when large-scale components with a polycrystalline microstructure are used, the impact of direct energy deposition additive manufacturing on the microstructure and the phases formed in an iron-based shape memory alloy was investigated in the current study. In particular, tungsten inert gas wire and arc additive manufacturing was employed to process FeMn₃₄Al₁₅Ni_7.5 (at.%). The process parameters, as well as the grain morphology and texture was investigated. By welding several layers on top of each other, a wall structure was generated with a length of 60 mm and a height of 40 mm. To maintain a sufficient cooling rate for each weld layer, the structure was cooled to near room temperature between the individual welds, with the aim of obtaining a high (α/γ) ratio. With this approach, a defect-free microstructure could be formed along the entire material. Optical microscopy revealed that the grain size had increased over the height when cross sections were considered. Despite the heat input of each weld, which induces an α→γ transformation in the previous layer, the grain boundaries in building direction expanded beyond the individual layers, resulting in grains with a length exceeding the height of a single layer. The preferential grain orientation in the building direction was determined by X-ray diffraction and found to be near <100>, which is an easy growth direction for bcc and fcc solidifying alloys. The distribution of grain orientations with respect to the building direction was investigated by comparing the inverse pole figures of certain heights of the built structure.