CMake is interesting because the CMakefiles are just a different type of editable/configurable build script (ie. slightly different Makefiles). It's still an interpreted step between build instructions and the output that you actually use to build which isn't meant to be edited and therefore obfuscates part of the process... so autoconf. This is both a strength and weakness in that there are so many external modules for CMake (eg. the various FindX) that they work great most of the time but when they break they are more difficult to fix than an atomic change to the actual compiler flags in a Makefile.

I don't think there will ever be a standard build tool, simply shunts to get the needed functionality from others. Eventually all build tools will exist in each other and the only interface will be recursion.

So far CMake served us well. I'm using it for 8 or so years now for small and larger systems.

I especially like that one file allows me to develop on XCode, somebody else on Visual Studio and finally deploy on Linux/gcc. One config file creates native projects on all 3 platforms, no manual hacking.

CMake has the nice property of being able to generate non-Make build systems, but otherwise is more of just "autotools done differently" rather than "autotools done better". In practice I haven't found it to be any more pleasant to use than autotools.

Have you tried using cmake on e.g. IRIX?