CiviCRM - User Experience

Follow-up to my question about engaging with the CiviCRM community: https://forum.backdropcms.org/forum/civicrm-support-and-community-engage...

I love the power and flexibility of CiviCRM and I love how supportive the CiviCRM community has been with Backdrop CMS. But, frankly I'm a bit discouraged by the user experience with CiviCRM and have a really hard time recommending it to folks who are not already using it. 

For site editors managing data in CiviCRM is a pretty ugly experience, not to metion confusing and overwhelming, once you get into the settings. 

Are there things I can do to improve this "editor" experience? Are their alternative themes or skins for the CiviCRM UI?

Is there anything for me to look forward to in terms of possible improvements in the user experience?